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Desiderius  Erasmus 

concerning 
the  Aim  and  Method  of  Education 


tlonDon:    C.   J.   CLAY   and   SONS, 

CAMBRIDGE   UNIVERSITY   PRESS   WAREHOUSE, 

AVE  MARIA   LANE. 

Claegoto:   50,  WELLINGTON  STREET. 


leMJjifl:   F.  A.  BROCKHAUS. 

^m  Sorb:    THE  MACMILLAN   COMPANY. 

Bombag  anti  Calcutta:   MACMILLAN  AND  CO..   Ltd. 


[A//  Rights  reserved] 


Desiderius  Erasmus 

concerning 
the  Aim   and    Method   of  Education 


by 

WILLIAM    HARRISON   ^OODWARD 

Professor  of  Education  in  the  University  of  Liverpool 
Author  of  f^ittorino  da  Feltre 


CAMBRIDGE  : 
at  the  University  Press 

1904 


ADAVLPHO   GULIELMO   WARD 

ERASMIANO 

ORNATISSIMO 


LB 


PREFACE. 

THE  scope  of  the  present  study  of  Erasmus  is 
defined  by  its  title.  I  have  directed  attention  to 
one  aspect  only  of  his  work  and  personality.  That 
aspect  of  Erasmus  is  of  profound  importance.  Indeed 
it  may  be  reasonably  maintained  that  of  all  his  activi- 
ties none  was  more  congenial  to  him,  none  more 
characteristic,  none  of  more  influence  in  his  own  age 
and  subsequently  than  that  which  was  concerned  with 
Education. 

Yet  although  the  limitations  of  the  subject  have 
not  been  lost  sight  of,  it  has  been,  from  the  nature  of 
it,  necessary  to  take  a  wider  view  of  the  attitude  of 
Erasmus  to  the  problems  of  his  time  than  a  hasty 
reading  of  the  title  of  this  book  might  suggest.  For 
it  is  obviously  impossible  to  understand  and  to  present 
aright  the  Erasmian  ideal  of  the  fit  training  of  the 
young  unless  the  presuppositions  upon  which  it  rests 
are  duly  examined.  Thus  a  brief  historical  review  of 
the  literary  life  of  Erasmus  was  called  for,  though  it 
seemed  well  to  make  clear  the  limits  of  the  purpose 
for  which  it  was  compiled.     Much   that   fills   so    large 


J 


vi  Preface 

a  space  in  the  approved  biographies  of  Erasmus  has 
been  in  effect  ignored,  as  but  remotely  affecting  the 
subject  of  this  enquiry.  On  the  other  hand  I  have 
endeavoured  to  reaUse  with  precision  the  appeal  which 
Antiquity  made  to  Erasmus  and  the  message  which  he 
beHeved  it  to  convey  to  the  modern  world.  Compared 
with  this  his  share  in  the  Lutheran  conflict  seems  to 
me  to  be,  in  a  serious  appraisement  of  Erasmus,  as 
unimportant  as  it  was  to  himself  distasteful. 

The  deepening  interest  in  educational  enquiry  which 
marks  the  present  time  will,  we  may  confidently  hope, 
extend  to  the  study  of  the  aims  and  achievements  of 
the  educators  of  the  past.  Next  to  the  great  Italian 
Masters  of  the  Quattrocento  Erasmus  makes  claim  for 
serious  recognition.  The  actual  degree  of  his  influence 
in  Germany  and  England  it  is  difficult  to  assess,  and 
writers  have  differed  in  their  judgments.  But  if  it 
should  be  provable  that  Erasmus  left  less  direct  impress 
upon  school  organisation  or  methods  than  certain  of 
his  contemporaries,  the  reason  will  be  found  in  the  fact 
that  he  was  on  crucial  points  so  far  in  advance  of  public 
opinion,  that  he  took  so  wide,  so  truly  humanist,  a  view 
of  the  scope  of  education  that  in  the  troubled  times  of 
sectarian  partisanship  his  day  was  not  yet.  In  certain 
regards  we  must  feel  as  we  study  such  a  work  as  the 
De  Pneris  statini  ac  liberaliter  instituendis,  contained  in 
English  dress  in  the  present  volume,  that  he  speaks 
with  a  note  unexpectedly  "  modern."  As  we  realise 
therefrom  the  depth  of  Erasmus'  conviction  of  the 
respect  due  to  the  rights  of  the  child  we  understand,  what 
we  may  have  already  suspected,  how  far  a  prevalent 


Preface  vii 

type  of  criticism  of  Humanist  methods  has  been  based 
upon  ignorance  of  the  facts. 

It  is  indeed  of  the  first  importance  that  the  student 
of  the  history  of  educational  thought  should  be  led  to 
acquaintance  at  first  hand  with  the  men  whose  doctrines 
are  under  discussion.  Only  upon  this  condition  can  the 
study  of  the  subject  be  regarded  as  worthy  of  serious 
recognition  as  an  aspect  of  literary  and  historical 
enquiry. 

In  the  study  of  Erasmus  the  text  is  the  first,  the 
second  and  the  third  authority :  and  I  have  built  up 
my  exposition  upon  repeated  readings  of  the  treatises, 
prefaces,  and  letters  pertinent  to  the  subject.  The 
range  of  Erasmian  literature  is  notoriously  immense. 
To  distinguish  the  works  which  have  proved  specially 
prolific  of  suggestion  is  scarcely  possible.  But  two 
may  be  here  singled  out  as  of  first  rate  importance  to 
students  of  Erasmus.  The  Letters  of  Erasmus  by 
Mr  F,  M.  Nicholls  carries  down  the  correspondence  to 
1509:  a  second  volume  which  is,  I  am  glad  to  know, 
to  appear  very  shortly,  will  include  the  year  1517.  The 
correspondence  of  Erasmus  so  far  as  it  is  of  bio- 
graphical interest — in  a  very  wide  sense — is  presented 
in  an  English  version,  with  most  careful  apparatus  of 
preface  and  note.  Without  necessarily  accepting  every 
disputed  attribution  or  date,  I  can  affirm  that  no  more 
valuable  aid  to  the  understanding  of  Erasmus  down  to 
the  Cambri(3ge  period  has  yet  seen  the  light,  whether 
in  this  country  or  in  Germany.  The  second  work  to 
which  allusion  is  made  is  the  analysis  of  the  psycho- 
logical presuppositions  of  Erasmus'  educational  doctrine 

«5 


viii  Preface 

of  Dr  Hermann  Togel,  Die pddagogischen  Anschautmgen 
des  Erasmus  in  ihrer  psychologischen  Begriindiing.  The 
author,  however,  is  prone  to  see  everything  in  terms  of 
Herbartianism,  to  the  detriment  of  his  historical  per- 
ception. 

I  desire  to  express  my  obh'gations  to  Miss  May 
Allen,  Mr  John  Sampson,  University  Librarian,  and 
Mr  E.  Gordon  Duff,  for  kind  assistance  at  different 
stages  of  my  work.  Miss  Allen  has  been  particularly 
helpful  in  the  bibliographical  section. 


The  University,  Liverpool, 
February  i,  1904. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Preface  v 


Chronological  Outline xi 

PART   I. 

Chap. 

I.      An  Outline  of  the  Life  of  Erasmus        .        .        i 

1 1 .     Characteristics. 

§  I.     Erasmus  and  Antiquity 30 

§  2.     The  Reconciliation  of  the  Antique  with  the 

Christian  Spirit 39 

{^  3.     Erasmus  and  the  Ciceronians          .         .         •  5' 

§  4.     Erasmus  and  the  Vernacular  Tongues  .        .  60 

III.  The  Educational  Aim  of  Erasmus. 

§  I.  The  General  Purpose  of  Education  .  .  72 
§  2.  The  Three  Factors  of  Human  Nature  .  .  ^^ 
§  3.     Limitations  of  the  Educational  Ideal     .        .      83 

IV.  The  Beginnings  of  Education. 

§  I.     Earliest  Care 86 

§  2.     Health   and  Physical  Well-being  of  Young 

Children 87 


§  3,  Home  Instruction 

§  4.  School-life  and  Home  Instruction  . 

§  5.  The  Qualifications  of  the  Master    . 

§  6.  The  Beginnings  of  Systematic  Instruction 

§  7.  Discipline 


90 
92 

93 
96 
98 


Contents 


Chap. 
V. 


PAGE 

The  Liberal  Studies. 

§     I.  The  Teaching  of  Grammar    .■        .        .        .     loi 

§     2.  The  Choice  of  Authors  in  General          .         •   , '  ^  ^ 

§     3.  Method  of  Reading  an  Author       .         .         .115 

§     4.     Orators  and  Oratory 120 

§     5.  Composition  in  Latin  Prose    .         .         •         .123 

§     6.     History  and  Historians 128 

§     7.     Logic  and  Philosophy 133 

§     8.  Greek  Studies,  and  the  Argument  for  them    .     135 

§    9.  Mathematics  and  Nature  Knowledge     .        .138 

§  10.  The  Education  of  Girls  .....     148 

§  II.  Moral  Training  :    Character  as  the  Supreme 

End  of  Education 154 


PART    IL 

VL  The  Treatise De  Ratione  Sttidii,  that  is,  Upon  the  Right 
Method  of  Instruction  ( 1 5 1 1 ) 

Vn.  The  Treatise  De  Pueris  statim  ac  liberaliter  insti- 
tuendis,  that  is,  The  Argument  of  Erasmus  of  Rot- 
terdam, that  Children  should  straightway  from 
their  earliest  years  be  trained  iti  Virtue  and  Sound 
Learning 

VIII.     I.     De    Conscribendis    Epistolis, 
Method   of  mastering   a 
Classical  Author 
II.     From    the    Colloquy    entitled    Convivium    Reli- 

giosum 226 

Bibliographical  Lists. 

(i)    List  of  Books  quoted  and  referred  to        .         .231 
(ii)    List    of   first   recorded    Editions    of    English 

Versions  of  Educational  Works  by  Erasmus     235 

Index 240 


Cap.    Liv.  :     The 
Passage   from    a 


161 


179 


223 


CHRONOLOGICAL    OUTLINE 

THE    LIFE   AND   WRITINGS   OF   ERASMUS 

CONTEMPORARY   EVENTS   IN   THE   HISTORY 
OF   HUMANISM 


CHRONOLOGICAL 

The  Life  and  Writings  of  Erasmus. 

1466     Erasmus  born  at  Rotterdam  (Oct.  27). 


1470 

1476 
1480 

1483 


1490 

1492 

1493 
1494 


At  school  at  Gouda  ;  afterwards  at  Choir  School,  Utrecht. 


He  is  sent  to  school  at  Deventer. 

He  is  transferred  to  the  school  of  the  Brethren  at  Bois- 
le-Duc. 


He  enters  the  Augustinian  Monastery  at  Stein. 


He  is  at  work  on  Valla  and  upon  the  Anti-barbari. 

Ordained  priest. 

Quits  the  Monastery. 

A  student  at  the  University  of  Paris. 


OUTLINE 


Contemporary  Events  in  the  History  of  Humanism. 


/' 


1465 

1467 
1468 

1469 
1470 
147 1 

1476 

1477 
1480 

1481 
1482 

1484 
1485 


149 1 
1492 

1494 


Hegius  becomes  Head  Master  at  Deventer. 

The  first  Printing  Press  in  Italy  set  up  at  Subiaco. 

The  printers  Sweynheim  and  Pannartz  remove  to  Rome. 

Ed.  Princ.  of  Cicero,  De  Oratore  (Rome). 

Edd.  Prince,  of  Vergil,  Livy,  Letters  of  Cicero,  etc. 

First  Press  set  up  at  Venice. 

First  Press  set  up  at  Paris. 

Sixtus  IV  founds  the  first  Papal  Museum  of  Antiquities 

on  the  Capitol. 
First  Greek  Press  set  up  :  at  Milan. 
Caxton  sets  up  his  Press  at  Westminster. 
R.  Agricola  at  Deventer. 

Death  of  Francisco  Filelfo. 
Reuchlin  at  Rome. 

Ficino   completes  the  Latin  version  of  the  Dialogues  of 

Plato. 
Culminating  period  of  the  Platonic  Academy  of  Florence. 
Accession  of  Henry  VII  of  England.     Angelo   Poliziano 

made  Professor  of  Rhetoric  and  Poetry  in  the  Studio 

of  Florence.     Linacre  goes  to  Italy. 
The  Ed.  Princ.  of  Homer  published  at  Florence.     Grocyn 

goes  to  Italy. 

Grocyn  teaches  Greek  at  Oxford. 
Death  of  Lorenzo  dei  Medici. 

Death  of  Poliziano.    The  Invasion  of  Italy  by  Charles  VIII 
of  France.     The  Aldine  Press  set  up  in  Venice. 


xiv      The  Life  and  Writings  of  Erasmus 


He    composes    the    Commendatory    Letter    to    Gaguin's 

History. 
A  teacher  of  Latin  in  Paris. 


June.     His  first  visit  to  England  :  Oct. — Dec.  at  Oxford. 

Jan.  He  leaves  England  for  Paris.  Adagia  (Paris).  Be- 
gins to  devote  himself  to  study  of  Greek. 

April.  Passes  through  Press  an  edition  of  Cicero,  De 
Officits,  now  lost. 

In  Artois  :  Aug.  at  Louvain. 

Enchiridion  Mil.  Christiaiii  (Antwerp). 
His  second   visit  to  England:    April,    1505 — May,   1506. 

L.    Vallensis  in  N.   Test.  Adnotationes. 
His  versions  of  Hecuba  and  Iphigenia  in  Aulide ;  and  of 

Luciani  Dialogi.     Sets  out  for    Italy  (June)  :    Turin, 

Florence,  Bologna. 
At  Bologna.     Dec,  to  Venice. 
At  Venice.  New  editions  oi  Adagia  and  of  versions 

of  Euripides.     Nov.,  to  Padua  ;  Dec,  to  Siena. 
Feb.,  to  Rome  and  Naples.    Returns  to  England  ;  Moriae 

Encomium  (Paris). 
In  England. 
At  Cambridge  (Aug.).  De  Ratione  Studii  (Paris).     De 


Copia  (Basel). 


Plutarchi  Opuscula  (Basel). 
Catonis  Praecepta. 


Quits  England  :  in  Flanders  :  at  Basel.  Institutum 
Hominis  Christiani  (London). 

At  Basel :  Flanders  :  England.  Novum  Instrumentum 
(Basel) :  Hieronymi  Opera  (do.)  :  Gasds  Greek  Gra^n- 
mar  translated  (do.) :  Colloquia  (do.)  :  Querela  Pads 
(do.)  :  Institutio  Principis  C/iristiani  (Louvam). 


Events  m  the  History  of  Humanism      xv 


Colet  returns  from  Italy  to  lecture  at  Oxford. 

Wimpheling's  Isidoneus  Germanicus  published. 
Ed.  Princ.  of  Aristophanes  (Aldus).     Execution  of  Savo- 
narola. 
Linacre  returns  to  England. 


Ed.  Princ.  of  Sophocles  (Aldus). 

Foundation  of  University  of  Wittenberg.     Ed.  Princ.  of 

Thucydides  (Aldus). 
Death  of  Rodrigo  Borgia,  Pope  Alexander  VI. 


Reuchlin's  De  Rudimeniis  Hebraicis  appears. 


Guicciardini  compiles  his  Historia  Fiorentina. 

Accession   of   Henry   VIII.      The    Reuchlin   controversy 

begins. 
Colet's  foundation  of  St  Paul's. 


W.  Lily  made  High  Master  of  St  Paul's.     Isagogicon  in 

Graecas  litems,  by  Simler  (Tiibingen). 
Feb.,  death  of  Julius  II.     March,  election  of  Leo  X.     // 

Principe  of  Machiavelli  completed. 


Epistolae  Obscurorum  Virorum  issued. 
More's  Utopia.  Foundation  of  Corpus  Christi  Coll.,  Oxford. 
//  Cortegiano  of  Castiglione  finished.     Italian  grammar  of 
Fortunio  (Ancona). 


xvi       The  Life  and  Writings  of  Erasmus 


Brussels  :  England  (April) :  Antwerp  :  Louvain. 

At  Basel.  Anti-barbari  i.  (Cologne). 

Settles  at  Louvain. 

Leaves  Louvain. 

Takes  up  residence  at  Basel. 

Definitive  Edition  of  Colloquia  (Basel). 

Paraphrases  upon  Four  Gospels. 

Concerned  with    Ciceronian   controversy.      De   Cvvilitate 
Morum pueriliuin  (Basel).    In.  Christ.  Matriin.  (Basel). 
Condemnation  of  the  Colloquies  by  the  University  of  Paris. 
Ciceronianus  composed. 


Quits  Basel  for  Freiburg  in  Breisgau.     De  Pueris  Insti- 
tuendis  Basel). 


Apophthegmata  (Basel). 
Terentii  Opera  (Basel).     Basilii  Magni  Opera  (Basel). 
Erasmus  returns  to  Basel- 
Death  of  Erasmus  at  Basel  (July  12). 


Events  in  the  History  of  Humanism     xvii 


Collegium  Trilingue  at  Louvain  opened.  Luther's  Theses 
at  Wittenberg. 

The  Ins tituti ones  Grammaticae  Graecae  of  Melanchthon. 
Universities  of  Erfurt  and  Leipsic  come  under  human- 
ist control.    Melanchthon  teaches  Greek  at  Wittenberg. 

Controversy  in  Rome  on  Ciceronianism. 

Death  of  Leo  X. 

Jan.,  accession  of  Adrian  VI  :  his  death,  Sept.  Clement 
VII,  Pope.     J.  Sturm  a  pupil  at  Li^ge. 

J.  L.  Vives,  De  causis  corruptarum  Artium  and  De  Tra- 
dendis  Disciplinis  published. 

Luther's  appeal  for  establishment  of  burgher  schools. 

Bembo,  Delia  Volgar  Ungua  published. 

The  Gymnasium  of  Nuremberg  organised  by  Melanchthon. 


Death  of  Froben.     The  Sack  of  Rome. 
Schul-Ordnung  of  Elector  of  Saxony.     //  Cortegiano  pub- 
lished. 
Budaeus  publishes  his  Commentarii  Linguae  Graecae. 

Coronation  of  Charles  V  at  Bologna.  End  of  the  Floren- 
tine Republic.     Diet  of  Augsburg. 

Elyot's  Governour.  The  First  Oration  of  Julius  Caesar 
Scaliger  Against  Erasmus^  in  defence  of  M.  T.  Cicero, 
circulated. 

Foundation  of  the  College  de  Guyenne  at  Bordeaux. 
The  Pantagruel  of  Rabelais  published. 
Foundation  of  the  Society  of  Jesus. 
The  Gargantua  of  Rabelais  first  (?)  published. 
The  De  Ciceroniana  imitatione  of  Dolet  (Lyons). 


Note.  The  titles  of  authorities  as  given  in  the  foot-notes  are 
brief  titles.  For  exact  identification  of  Author,  Work,  and  Edition 
quoted,  the  Bibliographical  List  (i),  on  page  231,  should  be 
consulted.  The  references  to  the  writings  of  Erasmus  are 
uniformly  made  to  the  Leyden  edition  of  1 703,  inn  voll.  f". 


PART    I. 


CHAPTER   I. 

AN    OUTLINE   OF  THE   LIFE   OF   ERASMUS,  MAINLY 
IN    REGARD   TO    HIS   CAREER    AS   A   SCHOLAR. 

Erasmus  was  born  at  Rotterdam  on  October  27th,  1466^ 
He  and  his  brother  Peter,  some  three  years  his  senior,  were  the 
offspring  of  a  union  unsanctified  by  the  Church.  His  parents 
were  Gerard  of  Gouda  and  Margaret,  the  daughter  of  a  physician 
of  Zevenberge.  Their  marriage  had  been  obstructed  by  the 
family  of  Gerard,  but  at  the  time  of  the  birth  of  Erasmus  there 
would  seem  to  have  been  a  legal  bar  to  the  union,  in  the  fact 
that  the  father  was  in  priest's  orders  I  The  connection  of 
Erasmus  with  Rotterdam  rests  probably  on  the  circumstance 
of  his  mother's  residence  in  that  city  when  he  was  born. 

There  is  no  ground  for  doubt  that  the  name  Erasmus  was 
given  him  at  baptism  after  a  Saint  and  Martyr  held  in  reverence 
in  the  Low  Countries  and  in  England^.  The  common  prae- 
nomen  Desiderius  was  added  as  a  Latin  equivalent  by  Erasmus 
himself;  Roterodamus  completed  the  triple  designation  with 
which  Roman  usage  made  him  familiar.     The  first  edition  of 

^  The  evidence  for  1466  is  set  out  by  Richter,  Erasmus- Studien^  p.  v; 
Nicholls,  The  Epistles  of  Erasmus,  p.  474,  has  arrived  at  the  same  conclu- 
sion.    The  date  usually  given  is  1467. 

^  See  Nicholls,  Epistles,  p.  14. 

'  Erasmus  was  a  martyred  Bishop  of  Campania,  who  suffered  under 
Diocletian. 

W.  -  I 


Childhood  of  Erasmus 


the  Adagia  (1500)  bears  the  full  title:  Desyderius  Erasmus 
Roterodamus. 

The  common  assumption  that  Erasmus  was  a  name 
fancifully  devised  by  its  bearer  to  express  in  Greek  form  the 
meaning  'beloved'  contained  in  the  Flemish  Gerrit  or  Gerard 
is  unnecessary. 

The  circumstances  of  their  birth  inevitably  clouded  the 
home-life  of  the  two  boys,  and  we  know  that  throughout  his 
career  Erasmus  felt  the  slur  which  was  cast  upon  his  mother's 
name  and  his  own.  As  late  as  15 16  he  sought  for  formal  relief 
from  the  disability  attaching  to  his  origin  by  papal  dispensation. 
Moreover,  it  is  not  unlikely  that  this  same  "invidious  bar"  may 
have  materially  influenced  his  guardians  in  the  action  which 
they  took  in  respect  of  his  future  career  at  the  time  of  his 
parents'  death.  And  when  towards  the  close  of  his  life  Erasmus 
became  involved  in  bitter  controversies,  religious  and  literary, 
he  found  opponents  not  unwilling  to  envenom  their  warfare  by 
a  taunt  so  ready  to  their  hands. 

At  four  years  of  age  Erasmus  was  living  with  his  mother  at 
Gouda  where  he  attended  a  school  kept  by  Peter  Winckel, 
afterwards  his  guardian.  Later  we  find  him  entered  as  a  pupil 
in  the  Cathedral  Choir  School  at  Utrecht.  When  nine  years 
old  he  was  taken  by  Margaret  to  Deventer  where  he  attended  the 
famous  school  attached  to  the  Church  of  St  Lebuin,  of  which 
Alexander  Hegius^  was  the  head-master,  and  Sintheim,  a  scholar 
of  distinction,  an  assistant.  The  Deventer  school  was  not  one 
of  the  schools  of  the  Brethren  of  the  Common  Life ;  nor  was 
Hegius  a  member  of  the  Order,  though  certain  of  his  assistants 
probably  were.  The  school  had  great  repute  in  the  Low 
Countries  and  in  the  Rhine-land,  and  at  this  period  contained 
possibly  six  hundred  pupils.  We  cannot  trace  any  definitely 
humanist  note  in  the  instruction  of  the  junior  classes.  Erasmus 
in  later  years  complained  bitterly  both  of  the  teaching  and 

^  Hegius  went  to  Deventer  school  in  1465  and  died,  still  head-master,  in 
1498.     Nicholls,  p.  17. 


Erasmus  at  Deventer 


of  the  books  employed,  as  well  as  of  the  brutality  of  the 
discipline'.  It  is  difficult  not  to  feel  that,  like  Locke  at 
Westminster,  Erasmus  derived  from  Deventer  life-long  impres- 
sions of  profitless  and  unhappy  experiences  of  his  school  days. 
Hegius,  probably,  had  but  little  share  in  his  education,  for 
Erasmus  left  the  school  in  1480,  before  he  had  reached  the 
higher  classes.  But  he  tells  us  that  he  there  saw  that  much 
greater  scholar  Rudolphus  Agricola,  who  on  his  return  from 
Italy  in  that  year  was  staying  at  Deventer,  where  he  visited  the 
school  and  perhaps  took  an  occasional  part  in  the  teaching. 
We  may  safely  infer  that  the  man  from  whom  Erasmus  learnt 
most  was  Sintheim,  whose  repute  for  learning  and  for  skill  in 
teaching  survived  in  North  Germany  for  half  a  century.  We  are 
told  that  Hegius  and  Sintheim  were  men  of  true  humanist 
instincts  and  represented  the  wider  educational  aims  and  more 
intelligent  methods  which  the  Italian  masters  had  set  forth  in 
the  famous  schools  of  Mantua  and  Ferrara.  But  we  gather 
from  Erasmus'  recollections  that  Deventer  exemplifies  once 
more  the  gulf  which  in  the  actual  working  of  a  school  separates 
ideals  from  practice.  The  "love  for  sound  learning"  has  not 
always  proved  to  be  readily  translateable  into  terms  of  class- 
work,  instruction  and  exercises.  Hegius  and  Sintheim  were 
men  of  scholarship ;  but  their  assistants,  the  text-books,  the 
range  of  possible  subjects,  the  available  methods  of  instruction, 
were  inevitably  those  of  the  time.  So  we  find  Erasmus  as 
he  looks  back  upon  his  school  days  writing :  "  Deventer 
was  a  school  still  in  the  age  of  barbarism.  We  had  the 
Pater  rneus  (joint  declension  of  noun  and  adjective)  and  the 
tenses  dictated  to  us  for  learning  by  heart ;  the  accidence  of 
Ebrardus  Graecista  and  the  ridiculous  verses  of  John  Garland 
were  read  aloud.  From  Hegius  and  Sintheim  the  school  drew 
some  savour  of  true  Letters :  and  so  by  contact  with  boys  in 
Sintheim's  class  I  got  glimpses  of  higher  things.  Hegius  him- 
self gave  on  rare  occasions  lessons  to  classes  grouped  together." 
^  Op.  i.  514  F.     Infra,  p.  205  seqq. 

I 2 


Life  at  Bois-le-Duc. 


In  the  tract  De  Pueris  we  find  allusions  of  the  same 
kind,  which  relate,  we  cannot  doubt,  to  his  own  school 
experiences.  Erasmus  admits  that  at  Deventer  he  imbibed  a 
strong  taste  for  learning,  though  with  the  qualification  that  he 
could  only  indulge  it  by  stealth,  and  in  spite  of,  rather  than  by 
the  aid  of,  his  masters.  It  is  perhaps  wise  not  to  take  this 
reservation  very  literally. 

In  the  autumn  of  1480  Erasmus  had  reached  the  third 
class,  "Tertia"  (the  eighth,  Octava,  being  the  lowest),  when  he 
lost  both  father  and  mother  within  a  few  months  of  each  other. 
He  was  thereupon  taken  from  Deventer  to  be  entered  at  the 
school  of  the  Collationary  Brothers  at  Bois-le-Duc.  He  left 
Deventer  a  boy  of  fourteen,  a  studious  youth,  probably  of  poor 
physique,  and  shrinking  from  too  intimate  converse  with  other 
boys,  with  whom  he  had  little  in  common  and  in  whose  hands 
the  knowledge  of  the  shadow  resting  on  his  home-life  was  an 
inevitable  instrument  of  torture.  Yet  the  change  to  Bois-le-Duc 
was  by  no  means  for  the  better  if  we  are  to  accept  the  criticism 
which  Erasmus  at  a  later  period  recorded  upon  the  school  of 
the  Brethren.  We  must,  however,  remember  that  Erasmus 
cannot  be  treated  as  a  judicial  witness  in  respect  of  the  period 
which  followed  the  death  of  his  mother  in  1480.  It  has 
generally  been  assumed'  that  his  entry  upon  the  monastic 
life  and  his  subsequent  ordination  were  steps  forced  upon  him 
by  the  self-seeking  action  of  his  guardian ;  that  a  chain  of 
circumstances  was  deliberately  forged  to  fetter  him ;  that  he 
was  cajoled  into  accepting  a  decision  from  which  there  was  no 
escape.  It  is  enough  to  say  here  that  a  candid  examination 
of  all  the  evidence  we  can  collect  from  Erasmus'  own  writings 
which  date  from  that  period  leads  his  biographers  to  a  different 
conclusion.  His  reminiscences,  recorded  at  a  much  later 
period,  upon  which  the  version  usually  current  is  based,  are 

^  This  not  unnatural  interpretation  of  the  references  made  by  Erasmus 
to  his  early  life  is  found  in  every  biography  except  in  those  of  Emerton  and 
NichoUs.     But  the  facts  seem  to  be  as  they  are  stated  above. 


Erasmus  at  Stein 


so  evidently  coloured  by  subsequent  experiences  and  reflections 
that  we  cannot  accept  them  as  a  sincere  account  of  the  actual 
facts.  The  boarding  school  of  the  Brethren  of  the  Common 
Life  at  Bois-le-Duc  was,  he  asserts,  "a  very  seed-bed  of 
monkery,"  and  as  a  place  of  education  worthless.  It  is,  of 
course,  possible  that  this  and  other  Houses  of  the  Brethren 
had  declined  from  the  high  standard  of  religious  life  and  of 
intellectual  interests  which  marked  them  at  Deventer,  Liege 
and  elsewhere.  We  have  no  contemporary  evidence  of  any 
kind  to  guide  us  to  a  judgment  of  the  level  of  studies  or  of 
spiritual  fervour  of  this  particular  monastery.  Erasmus  un- 
doubtedly inveighed  all  his  life  long  against  monastic  schools 
for  boys;  his  famous  dictum^ — "schola  sit  publica  aut  nulla" 
— is  certainly  aimed  at  the  schools  kept  by  the  monastic  orders. 
It  is  probable,  also,  that  the  monastic  career  was  presented  by 
his  schoolmasters  to  the  shrinking,  studious  boy,  of  no  fortune, 
no  prospects,  of  weakly  constitution,  and  of  discredited  origin, 
in  its  best  light.  To  the  friends  of  the  young  Erasmus  it  might 
well  seem  without  insincerity  a  suitable  calling.  And  there  is 
reasonable  ground  for  believing  that  to  Erasmus  himself  his 
choice  proved  for  some  years  at  least  sufficiently  congenial. 

He  remained  in  the  school  until  the  close  of  1482  or  a 
little  later.  His  guardians,  he  tells  us  in  15 15,  vied  with  the 
Brethren  in  bringing  moral  pressure  to  bear  upon  their  charge. 
He  was  then  between  16  and  17  years  of  age,  and  allured  by 
the  promise  of  unrestricted  opportunities  of  study  he  yielded, 
and  in  1483  entered  as  a  novice  the  Augustinian  monastery 
of  Emmaus  at  Stein  near  Gouda.  This  was  his  home  for  the 
next  ten  years  ;  here  in  due  course  he  made  full  profession,  and 
took  the  vows;  here  finally  in  1492  he  was  ordained  priest. 
Erasmus'  career  was  thus  finally  determined. 

The  period  of  his  residence  at  Stein  is  of  no  little  signi- 
ficance as  a  stage  in  the  development  of  Erasmus  as  a  man 
of  Letters.  It  is  clear  that  he  found  there  some  attractive 
*  De  Pueris,  etc.,  i.  504  C     Infra,  p.  204. 


Life  at  Stein,   1483 — 93 


companionship  and  much  tranquil  leisure  for  scholarly  reading. 
He  wrote,  we  may  suppose  for  his  own  amusement,  certain 
Latin  poems  that  have  been  preserved.  There  are  amongst 
them  a  few  religious  poems,  in  sapphics ;  satires  in  the  Horatian 
manner ;  elegiacs  after  TibuUus.  But  three  prose  works  are  of 
more  importance  in  revealing  the  trend  of  his  interests.  The 
first,  written  when  he  was  18,  is  an  Epitome  of  the  Elegantiae 
Linguae  Latinae  of  Laurentius  Valla\  the  great  Italian  scholar, 
the  contemporary  of  Vittorino  and  Poggio,  to  whom  later 
humanists  looked  up  with  justice  as  the  chief  restorer  of 
Latinity.  This  compendium  was  circulated  in  MS.  and  found 
its  way  into  the  hands  of  students  in  distant  centres  of  learning. 
Erasmus  is  unwearied  at  this  time  in  urging  upon  his  corre- 
spondents the  solid  worth  of  Valla's  work,  in  spite  of  the  known 
antipathy  of  churchmen  to  his  memory.  We  have  in  the  second 
place  two  slighter  compositions,  rhetorical  in  treatment  yet 
none  the  less  expressing  genuine  conviction  on  the  part  of  the 
writer,  a  piece  in  denunciation  of  war,  always  a  favourite  theme 
of  Erasmus,  and  an  oration  in  grateful  memory  of  a  lady  who 
had  befriended  his  orphanhood.  Thirdly,  he  has  left  a  formal 
epistle  De  Contemptu  Mundi  (i486)  in  which  with  evident 
sincerity  he  sets  forth  the  attractions  of  the  monastic  life,  in  a 
fashion  which  confirms  that  general  spirit  of  content  with  his 
quietist  career  which  breathes  through  all  the  letters  of  this 
period  which  have  survived. 

It  is  not  an  easy  problem  to  appraise  at  their  true  value  the 
complaints  which  Erasmus,  at  a  much  later  date,  levelled  against 
destiny  in  making  him  a  monk.  Two  things  seem  clear :  the  first 
is  that  he  has  left  no  contemporary  record  of  his  discontent ; 
the  second,  that  his  bent  to  literature  and  scholarship  was 
fostered  by  the  leisure  of  the  ten  years  spent  at  Stein,  as  it 
could  hardly  have  been  by  any  other  mode  of  life.  In  1493 
Erasmus  had  gained  repute  enough  to  have  become  known  to 

^  On  Valla's  contribution  to  scholarship  see  p.  104  :  and  on  Erasmus' 
early  respect  for  his  achievements,  Op.  iii.  i  c  (Nicholls,  p.  72). 


Erasmus  at  Paris 


the  Bishop  of  Cambrai,  whose  service  he  now  entered.  This 
appointment  enabled  him  to  gain  dispensation  from  residence 
in  the  monastery,  whereupon  the  Bishop  sent  him  to  the  Uni- 
versity of  Paris,  where  he  resided  at  the  College  de  Montaigu 
as  a  student  in  Theology.  The  absorbing  interests  of  the 
University  were  scholastic  Divinity  and  Logic.  Grammar  was 
treated  mainly  as  a  branch  of  Dialectic.  The  New  Learning 
was  but  feebly  represented.  Robert  Gaguin  was  perhaps  the 
best  scholar  teaching  regularly  in  the  University.  His  chief 
performance  is  a  Latin  history  of  France,  a  poor  humanist 
history  of  the  imitative  sort,  on  the  model  of  the  histories — 
themselves  lifeless  copies  of  Livy — of  Bruni  and  Poggio. 
Erasmus  wrote  a  laudatory  letter  to  the  writer  on  seeing  the 
work  in  manuscript.  It  was  thought  good  enough  to  print  as 
a  prefatory  epistle  (Sept.  1495)  to  the  work.  This  letter 
attracted  the  notice  of  certain  readers,  amongst  whom  was 
Colet,  who  reminded  Erasmus  of  this  occaCsion  of  his  first 
acquaintance  with  his  name. 

Erasmus,  although  in  the  faculty  of  Theology,  devoted 
himself  chiefly  to  the  classics,  and  made  a  beginning  with 
Greek.  In  this  he  was  almost  wholly  self-taught,  for  Greek 
literature  had  attracted  as  yet  very  few  students  outside  Italy, 
He  seems  to  have  preached  at  the  Augustinian  Abbey  Church 
of  Ste-Genevieve.  He  was  already  acquiring  that  distaste  for 
scholastic  learning,  particularly  as  represented  in  Scotus,  and  -^ 
in  the  mediaeval  grammarians,  which  he  so  loudly  expressed  as 
his  own  classical  feeling  became  more  defined.  But  it  is 
probable  that  leave  of  absence  from  the  monastery  was  at  first 
conditional  upon  the  devotion  of  a  fixed  proportion  of  time  to 
the  study  of  Theology.  This  will  explain  why  Erasmus,  be- 
coming resentful  of  restraint  upon  his  freedom,  writes  with 
an  accent  of  self-pity  of  this  enforced  occupation  with  the 
mediaevalists.  He  was  groping  his  way  to  the  standpoint  of 
historical  divinity  and  of  plain  literary  method  in  exegesis, 
which  was  characteristic  of  his  maturity.     Meantime  he  earned 


8  Erasmus  at  Paris 


his  living  as  a  teacher  of  Latin,  and  became  recognised  as  one 
of  the  ablest  scholars  in  residence.  About  1495  he  came  into 
contact  with  English  students,  and  transferred  his  quarters  to 
the  boarding-house  in  which  certain  young  Englishmen  of 
position  lived  for  purposes  of  study.  Amongst  them  was 
Lord  Mountjoy,  a  young  man  of  eighteen,  who  proved  one 
of  Erasmus'  most  forbearing  patrons.  Erasmus  was  fortunate 
in  his  English  pupils,  to  whom  he  was  indebted  for  much  con- 
sideration'at  the  time,  and  for  valuable  interest  in  subsequent 
years.  Apart  from  teaching,  Erasmus  was  a  most  industrious 
student,  and  in  spite  of  a  severe  illness  contracted  through  the 
unhealthiness  of  his  surroundings— Paris  was  noted  for  its  ague 
and  fever— he  was  absorbed  in  Latin  scholarship.  He  wrote  a 
little  handbook  on  epistolary  composition,  but  we  have  no  other 
published  work  from  his  pen  at  this  period. 

Erasmus  was  a  poor  man,  with  no  resources  beyond  his 
earnings  as  a  teacher.  He  had  the  tastes  and  the  necessities 
of  a  scholar,  conscious  of  considerable  powers  but  at  the  same 
time  of  a  bodily  condition  which  rendered  him  dependent  on 
a  certain  standard  of  comfort.  He  began  to  cast  about  for  the 
means  of  support  sanctioned  by  the  custom  of  the  age  among 
men  of  learning.  He  wanted  a  patron,  liberal,  but  not  ex- 
acting. To  the  scholar  of  the  Renaissance  generosity  lost  all 
its  grace  if  accompanied  by  expectation  of  definite  work  in 
return.  The  patron  should  be  content  with  the  consciousness 
that  it  had  been  permitted  him  to  come  to  the  aid  of  genius. 
There  is  indeed  nothing  pecuHar  to  Erasmus  or  to  his  age  in 
this  attitude.  A  certain  Lady  of  Veer  was  approached  through 
a  friend  in  the  interests  of  Erasmus.  Here  was  a  poor  scholar 
of  great  promise  anxious  to  establish  his  position  by  acquiring 
the  degree  of  Doctor;  desirous  also  of  enlarging  his  attain- 
ments by  a  sojourn  in  Italy  ;  a  man  of  such  ability  might  be 
counted  on  to  reflect  renown  upon  an  enlightened  patroness. 
As  all  his  biographers  have  admitted,  the  correspondence  of 
Erasmus  with  his  ally  who  had  the   ear   of  the  lady — who 


Scholars  and  Patrons 


yielded  not  very  adequately  to  persuasion — leaves  an  un- 
pleasant savour.  Irritable  self-conceit,  shameless  importunity, 
perfect  indifference  to  the  person  importuned,  are  all  in 
evidence ;  it  is  hard  to  banish  a  sense  of  contempt  for  a 
scholar  who  could  play  so  sordid  a  part. 

Yet  we  must  remember  that  Erasmus  was  by  profession  a 
scholar,  at  a  time  when  scholars  had  yet,  in  Western  Europe 
at  least,  to  establish  their  claim  to  professional  status  and 
respect.  His  was  a  career  in  which  no  external  standards  of 
capacity  were  so  far  understood  or  accorded  recognition.  The 
only  measure  of  desert  was  the  scholar's  own  claim  :  he  was 
above  criticism,  for  no  one  but  another  scholar  could  test  his 
excellence.  Hence  the  man  of  Letters  in  the  earlier  days  of 
the  New  Learning  was  apt  to  be  abnormally  sensitive,  resenting 
a  judgment  upon  himself  which  was  less  flattering  than  his 
own,  ever  suspicious  of  lack  of  appreciation,  and  filled  with  a 
sense  of  his  own  serious  importance.  It  was  an  inevitable 
stage  in  the  evolution  of  the  scholar's  position  in  the  new 
society.  The  pedant  or  the  charlatan  became  in  time  dis- 
tinguishable by  consent  from  the  man  of  real  power,  as 
standards  of  merit  which  were  readily  understood  were  slowly 
formulated  with  the  increasing  security  of  learning.  This 
irritable  self-consciousness  may  be  compared  with  that  of  the 
modern  actor,  or,  less  aptly,  with  that  of  the  prophet  of  a  new 
school  in  art  or  music,  where,  for  lack  of  accepted  canons  of 
excellence,  criticism  is  perforce  individual  and  provisional.  We 
understand  the  sensitiveness  of  the  artist  and  forgive  him  if  he 
likes  his  own  criticism  best.  As  regards  importunity,  Erasmus 
was  conscientiously  assured  that  he  had  it  in  his  power  to  add 
something  to  the  learning  of  his  age.  He  knew,  too,  as  we 
also  know,  that  in  his  begging  neither  avarice  nor  ambition  of 
place  had  part  or  lot.  We  can  sum  up  the  matter  by  saying 
that  if  Erasmus  did  not  rise  above  the  fashion  of  his  day  and 
the  precedents  of  his  class,  in  the  larger  view  his  motives  were 
not  wholly  unworthy.  It  proved  of  no  slight  import  to  the 
IV 


lo  First   Visit  to  England,   1499 


world  that  Erasmus  should,  with  whatever  importunities,  gain 
what  he  needed  to  go  on  with  his  studies. 

In  the  middle  of  1499  Erasmus  left  Paris  to  accompany 
Lord  Mountjoy  to  England.  This  was  the  first  of  several 
visits  to  this  country  and  left  behind  it  on  the  mind  of  the 
traveller  a  most  grateful  impression.  He  was  welcomed  as 
one  of  themselves  by  the  group  of  scholars,  with  Colet  at  their 
head,  which  centred  at  Oxford;  and  in  London  he  was  at 
home  with  More  and  Warham.  It  was,  during  this  winter  of 
1499,  that  Erasmus  laid  the  foundation  of  that  affectionate 
intimacy  which  united  him  to  More  and  Colet  until  their 
deaths.  Undoubtedly  his  intercourse  with  these  two  kindred 
minds  strengthened  in  Erasmus  the  determination  to  devote 
himself  to  classical  study.  Colet  urged  him  further  to  utilise 
his  attainments  in  the  service  of  historical  theology :  and  from 
this  time  we  find  frequent  reference  to  such  a  purpose  in  the 
correspondence  of  Erasmus.  Colet,  indeed,  attracted  all  that 
was  best  in  him ;  and  the  peculiar  intellectual  habit  of  the 
Oxford  scholar — his  historical  and  objective  view  of  knowledge 
— made  warm  appeal  to  Erasmus'  own  literary  and  scholarly 
instinct.  He  was  thus  able  to  appreciate  to  the  full  the 
method  upon  which  Colet  treated  the  Pauline  Epistles,  the 
subject  upon  which^he  was  at  that  period  specially  engaged. 
It  is  not  surprising  that  he  tried  to  secure  Erasmus  for  Oxford, 
as  a  co-worker  in  the  cause  which  he  had  so  closely  at  heart. 
But  Erasmus  became  at  once  suspicious  of  an  attempt  to 
fetter  his  liberty.  Indefatigable  now  and  always  as  a  student 
he  would  only  work  in  absolute  freedom.  His  aims  must  be 
of  his  own  choice ;  he  would  pursue  them  where  and  how  his 
own  waywardness  should  determine.  To  overlook  this  charac- 
teristic is  to  misunderstand  the  man :  with  him  this  passion  for 
independence  was  thoroughly  genuine  and  had  in  it  nothing  of 
mere  self-conceit.  It  is  evident  from  the  letters  which  he  ad- 
dressed to  Colet  before  leaving  England  that  he  was  still 
uncertain  whither  his  intellectual  tastes  would  lead  him.     He 


The  Study  of  Greek  1 1 

did  not  wish  the  question  to  be  pre-judged  by  any  one  else, 
not  even  by  Colet.  That  there  existed  an  intimate  relation 
between  sound  (i.e.  classical)  literature  and  sound  {i.e.  pre- 
scholastic)  divinity  he  was  already  assured.  But  it  was  still 
possible  that  his  dominant  interest  might  lie  in  the  ancient 
literatures.  And  in  any  case  it  was  clear  to  him  that  his 
equipment  in  learning  was  wholly  inadequate  to  the  task  of 
attacking  historical  divinity  as  a  scholar  should.  He  had 
already  resolved  that  "a  little  more  knowledge  and  a  little 
more  power  of  expressing  it "  were  the  pre-requisites  of  any 
service  which  he  could  render  to  the  world.  Whether  while  at 
Oxford  he  spent  any  time  upon  Greek  we  do  not  know,  nor 
whether  he  saw  Grocyn  and  Linacre,  the  pioneers  there  of  the 
New  Learning.  But  before  the  end  of  1499  he  had  deter- 
mined to  return  to  Paris. 

In  February  of  the  following  year  he  was  at  work  there, 
absorbed  in  the  classics  but  especially  in  Greek.  "  My  Greek 
studies  are  almost  too  much  for  my  courage,  while  I  have  not 
the  means  of  purchasing  books  nor  the  help  of  a  master." 
Throughout  the  spring  he  was  engaged  upon  the  first  collection 
of  the  Adagia,  a  compilation  of  proverbs,  maxims  and  witty 
utterances  drawn  from  classical  authors.  It  appeared  in  June 
1500  with  a  dedication  to  Lord  Mountjoy,  to  whom  Erasmus 
was  doubtless  indebted  for  timely  help  at  the  period.  The 
book  gave  evidence  of  a  wide  range  of  reading.  His  know- 
ledge of  Greek  was  in  spite  of  difficulties  rapidly  increasing. 
About  this  date  he  begins  to  quote  it  in  his  letters.  He 
records  that  he  is  at  work  upon  Homer  "  refreshed  and  fed  by 
the  very  sight  of  his  words  even  when  I  cannot  always  under- 
stand him."  Driven  from  Paris  by  the  plague  he  carried  off 
his  books  to  Orleans,  or  St  Omer,  but  longed  to  find  himself 
again  at  the  University  where  alone  books  and  a  teacher  were 
to  be  had.  When  he  had  attained  to  some  moderate  com- 
petency in  Greek,  "  without  which  the  amplest  erudition  in 
Latin  is  imperfect',"  he  will  devote  himself  entirely  to  sacred 
^  iii.  968  D.     Infra,  p.  135. 


12  Erasmus  at  Louvain 


literature.  To  earn  money  he  edited  the  De  Officiis  of  Cicero. 
By  this  date  (1501)  Erasmus  had  acquired  a  notable  power  of 
expression  in  Latin;  both  in  speech  and  in  writing :  and  by  his 
industry  and  his  acute  observation  he  had  accumulated  a  store 
of  knowledge  upon  the  material  of  the  language,  which  was 
surpassed  perhaps  by  his  great  predecessor,  Valla,  alone.  He 
was  laying  the  foundation  for  his  book  De  Copia  Verborum  ei 
Rerum,  the  Similia  and  an  enlarged  Adagia.  For  all  that 
he  insists  that  "  he  has  almost  deserted  the  Latin  Muse  for  the 
Greek,"  and  that  he  "  would  pawn  his  coat  for  a  codex  of  an 
author  whom  he  had  not  yet  read."  He  began  to  work  at 
Euripides  and  Isocrates  in  July  1 501,  and  is  revelling  in  his  hardly 
won  powers  of  construing.  He  tried  to  compile  a  commentary 
on  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  but  gave  up  the  task  for  lack  of 
sufficient  knowledge  of  the  original.  At  this  time,  too,  we 
meet  with  a  half-formed  project  of  an  edition  of  the  Letters  of 
St  Jerome.  But  in  such  a  task  "how  large  a  space  must  be 
filled  by  comment  upon  the  literature,  the  antiquities  and  the 
history  of  the  Greeks  \" 

In  1502  Erasmus  removed  to  Louvain.  His  travels  during 
the  years  1499- 15 05  throw  an  interesting  light  upon  one  or 
two  aspects  of  the  life  of  the  time.  We  perceive  for  instance 
the  real  meaning  of  the  constant  visitations  of  the  plague, 
which  year  after  year  broke  up  Universities  even  in  so  im- 
portant a  city  as  Paris,  bringing  in  its  train  risks  and  losses  of 
most  serious  import.  Next,  the  habit  of  travel  in  spite  of  the 
time  and  expense  involved.  Erasmus  is  constantly  on  the 
move.  Crossing  the  Alps  is  no  doubt  a  grave  and  costly 
venture,  but  a  scholar  regarded  a  visit  to  England,  Germany, 
Switzerland  more  lightly  than  he  did  a  century  ago. 

At  Louvain,  Erasmus  was  at  once  pressed  to  accept  the 
chair  of  Rhetoric  in  the  University,  an  offer  which  with  equal 
promptitude  he  declined.  He  had  no  intention  of  staying 
long  at  Louvain.  So  far  as  the  scarcity  of  texts  would  permit 
he  was  absorbed  in  Greek.  He  began  to  prepare  versions  from 
^  iii.  67  D  (NichoUs,  p.  289). 


His  Literary   Work  13 

Lucian  and  from  Euripides,  partly  by  way  of  earning  money 
from  patrons,  partly  to  supply  a  need  of  students.  We  must 
remember  the  extreme  scarcity  of  Greek  MSS.  and  of  printed 
editions  during  the  period  preceding  the  activity  of  the  Aldine 
Press  and  the  rival  houses,  of  the  Giunta,  Gryphius  and 
Plantin.  There  was  as  yet  no  printer  of  Greek  texts  out  of 
Italy :  and  Greek  copyists  were  rare.  Aldus  published  the 
Dialogues  of  Lucian  in  1504  :  Erasmus  spent  much  of  his  time 
translating  from  this  text.  It  is  not  difficult  to  imagine  that 
Lucian's  thrusts  at  the  philosophers  of  his  day  appealed 
peculiarly  to  Erasmus,  who  had  begun  to  expend  his  sarcasms 
upon  the  schoolmen.  There  was,  too,  much  in  common 
between  Lucian  and  his  translator  in  the  humour  of  their 
outlook  upon  life  and  the  overflowing  wit  with  which  they 
told  what  they  saw.  These  months  devoted  to  the  Dialogues 
bore  other  fruit  than  the  volume  of  translations  of  1506: 
they  rendered  possible  the  Praise  of  Folly  five  or  six  years 
later. 

Once  more  in  Paris  in  1505,  Erasmus  resumes  communi- 
cations with  his   English  friends,   especially  with   Colet,   now 
Dean  of  St  Paul's.      He  sent  him  one  or  two  of  his  books  in     . 
MS.,  amongst  which  was  the  Enchiridion,   a  simply  written 
manual  of  Christian  conduct,  but  not  the  Lucian.     The  work 
upon  which  he  was  particularly  engaged  was  a  new  find  of 
which  he  was  very  proud,  a  volume  of  Annotations  on  the  New  ^ 
Testament  by  Valla,  the  first  attempt  to  apply  the  method  of  '^ 
linguistic  criticism  to  Scripture^     To  Erasmus  such  a  line  of 
enquiry  was  thoroughly  congenial,  falling  in,  as  it  did,  with  his 
conviction  of  the  essential  importance  of  the  literary  point  of 
view  in  the  study  of  all  ancient  documents.     As  soon  as  this 
book  was  issued  from  the  press  (April   1505)   Erasmus  left 

^  The  aim  of  Valla's  Notes  was  to  correct  errors  in  the  Vulgate  by 
reference  to  the  original  Greek.  In  these  Notes  we  may  see  the  first 
suggestion  of  the  edition  of  the  Greek  Testament  with  its  version  and  notes 
which  Erasmus  published  in  1516. 


14        Second  Visii  to  England,   1505 — 6. 


Paris  for  another  visit  to  London,  on  the  invitation  of  Lord 
Mountjoy. 

No  city  in  Europe,  except  Rome,  possessed  such  attraction 
for  Erasmus  as  London  then  held  out,  in  the  presence  there 
of  the  well-known  group  of  English  scholars,  with  Colet  at 
their  head.  Linacre,  Grocyn,  More  and  Warham  were  either 
in  the  capital  or  close  at  hand.  Erasmus  it  seems  looked  to 
receive  a  sinecure  benefice  at  the  hand  of  the  Archbishop.  It 
is  significant  that  the  method  of  approach  to  this  desirable  end 
was  the  presentation  of  a  version  from  Lucian  to  Bishop  Fox 
and  a  translation  of  the  Hecuba  to  Warham.  During  this 
English  visit  the  University  of  Cambridge  passed  a  Grace 
enabling  Erasmus  to  take  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity, 
but  it  is  certain  that  he  did  not  avail  himself  of  it.  It  is 
probable  that  he  did  not  journey  either  to  Oxford  or  Cam- 
bridge during  the  year  that  he  remained  in  this  country.  The 
time  seems  to  have  been  spent  in  or  near  London,  much  of  it 
in  company  with  More,  who  joined  his  guest  in  translating 
Lucian.  More's  first  published  work  is  contained  in  the 
volume  of  the  Dialogues  in  Latin  dress  published  at  Paris 
by  Badius  in  1506.  Erasmus  left  England  in  May  of  that 
year  to  fulfil  a  project  conceived  more  than  ten  years 
before. 

The  position  of  Erasmus  in  the  world  of  Letters  was 
already  assured.  In  Louvain,  Paris  or  London,  wherever 
indeed  the  new  light  had  won  its  way,  his  repute  was  above 
question.  He  had  undoubtedly  command  of  the  best  Latin 
style  of  his  time  out  of  Italy.  He  was  widely  read  in  Roman 
literature,  classical  and  patristic.  Men  of  position  in  affairs, 
in  scholarship  and  in  the  Church  came  to  him  as  a  friend  and 
adviser.  It  rested  with  himself  alone  to  gain  fame  as  a  great 
Teacher  in  any  seat  of  learning  in  Europe.  But  Erasmus 
knew  how  much  more  he  had  yet  to  know  before  he  could  put 
forward  any  such  claim.  It  was  borne  in  upon  him  with 
increasing  force  that  he  must  first  make  himself  known  to  the 


The  Italian  Journey,    1506  15 

Italian  scholars  and  sit  at  the  feet  of  the  Greek  teachers  who 
even  yet  had  not  crossed  the  Alps. 

He  took  with  him  two  pupils  and  their  English  tutor,  and 
in  July  1506  was  well  on  his  way  by  Paris,  Lyons  and  Savoy. 
It  is  characteristic  of  Erasmus  that  finding  himself  for  the  first 
time  amidst  the  most  striking  scenery  in  Europe  he  left  no 
word  which  conveys  the  impressions  which  it  made  upon  him. 
Instead  we  have  a  classical  lucubration  on  Old  Age,  composed, 
we  are  told,  to  while  away  the  tedium  of  the  August  days  in 
the  High  Alps.  Only  once,  in  the  very  last  years  of  his  life, 
did  Erasmus  record  the  sensations  evoked  by  great  scenery, 
when  the  view  from  the  Lake  of  Constance  struck  his  fancy. 

At  Turin'  he  received  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Theology, 
and  pressed  on,  early  in  September,  to  Bologna.  Thence  in 
November  he  crossed  the  Apennines  to  Florence.  We  turn 
hopefully  to  his  correspondence.  But  what  do  we  find  ?  Not 
a  word  which  reveals  that  he  was  under  the  spell  of  the  beauty 
of  the  city,  that  he  recognises  the  dignity  of  its  civic  life,  the 
distinction  of  its  architecture  and  art.  He  gives  us  no  clue, 
moreover,  to  any  perception  of  the  living  significance  of 
Florence  in  the  history  of  learning.  We  may  perhaps  under- 
stand that  Erasmus  might  have  little  feeling  for  the  Heiterkeit 
of  the  Italian  spirit,  and  less  for  the  art  which  expressed  it. 
But  as  a  humanist  he  knew  himself  to  be  on  classic  ground, 
where  Chrysoloras  had  taught  Greek  first  in  Western  Europe, 
where  the  great  manuscript  treasures  had  been  collected,  the 
city  of  Poggio,  of  Ficino,  of  Poliziano.  Erasmus  made  no 
acquaintances ;  he  translated  more  Lucian,  and  grumbled  at 
his  lot.  It  was  a  principle  with  him  to  refuse  to  learn  or  even 
to  recognise  vernacular  languages.  Thus  he  found  himself  cut 
off  from  intercourse  in  a  society  proud  of  its  Tuscan  speech. 
"  You  speak  to  a  deaf  man,"  he  said  to  Ruccellai,  who  pressed 

^  Upon  the  Italian  journey  the  indispensable  authority  is  P.  Nolhac, 
£rasvie  en  Italic. 


1 6  Erasmus  in  Italy 

his  Italian  upon  him :  and  in  Italian  as  in  English  he  remained 
dumb  to  the  end. 

In  December  Erasmus  was  again  in  Bologna,  where  he  was 
an  amazed  spectator  of  the  entry  of  Julius  II,  a  victorious 
general  taking  possession  of  a  vanquished  city.  He  now  gave 
up  the  use  of  the  monastic  dress,  thus  decisively  refusing  to 
be  longer  identified  with  the  obscurantists  of  the  Church. 
Bologna  was  favourably  circumstanced  for  Greek  studies,  and 
in  its  University  Erasmus  made  the  first  of  those  friendships 
which  were  the  charm  of  his  Italian  sojourn.  The  year  (1507) 
which  he  thus  spent  was  of  high  importance  in  his  intellectual 
development.  He  had  come  to  Italy,  in  his  own  words,  chiefly 
for  the  sake  of  Greek,  and  found  himself  amid  a  circle  of 
noteworthy  scholars,  with  leisure  and  passable  health. 

Towards  the  end  of  1507  he  was  in  correspondence  with 
Aldus  Manutius,  the  great  printer,  respecting  a  new  and 
corrected  edition  of  his  versions  from  Euripides,  when  he  was 
met  by  an  offer  that  he  should  transfer  himself  to  Venice  and 
there  prepare  for  publication  a  new  and  larger  collection  of 
Adages.  At  the  close  of  the  year  Erasmus  was  installed  as  a 
member  of  the  Aldine  household,  his  pupils  got  rid  of  and  he 
himself  enjoying  what  could  be  had  nowhere  else  in  Europe, 
the  society  of  a  community  of  scholars  and  craftsmen  using 
Greek  as  their  living  language.  His  position  in  the  circle  is 
not  very  clear.  He  acted  in  some  capacity  as  adviser  and  as 
assistant  to  Aldus ;  but  his  time  must  have  been  chiefly 
absorbed  by  the  compilation  of  the  Adagia,  which  by  aid  of 
friends  and  of  books  became  a  wholly  new  work.  Amongst 
the  scholars  whom  from  time  to  time  he  may  have  seen  almost 
daily  were  John  Lascaris,  Marcus  Musurus  and  Urban  of 
Botzen,  all  Greek  scholars  of  the  first  rank,  and  engaged  in 
editorial  work  for  Aldus.  It  is  indeed  difficult  to  overstate  the 
debt  due  from  Erasmus  to  Aldus  at  this  critical  stage  of  his 
career.  Thanks  to  his  friendship  Erasmus  had  gained  ex- 
ceptional facility  in   Greek,   and   had   definitely  entered  the 


Erasmus  in  Rome,   1509  17 

inner  circle  of  Greek  scholars.  He  had  formed  profitable 
relations  with  the  greatest  publisher  of  his  age,  the  man  who 
in  a  true  sense  rendered  Greek  learning  possible  to  Western 
communities.  In  his  preface  to  the  Adagia  and  in  the  actual 
text  of  the  work  Erasmus  records  his  immense  obligation  to 
Aldus  and  to  his  colleagues  in  searching  for  MSS.  for  purposes 
of  the  work  and  in  diligent  help  in  interpretation.  But  it 
irked  Erasmus  to  feel  such  obligations ;  some  years  later  he 
wrote  a  spiteful  dialogue  (the  Colloquy  upon  Sordid  Wealth) 
in  abuse  of  Asulanus,  the  father-in-law  of  Aldus  and  manager 
of  his  household.  The  abuse  is  vented  upon  the  parsimony  of 
the  Aldine  table ;  but  the  Italian  standard  of  living  was  pro- 
bably as  beneficial  to  Erasmus  as  it  was  novel  and  unpleasant. 
And  in  any  case  we  may  be  certain  that  he  lived  there  only 
because  he  chose  to  do  so.  One  hopes  that  there  may  be  some 
key  to  the  puzzle  which  has  escaped  record.  Towards  the 
end  of  the  year  1508  as  the  great  Aldine  Rhetores  Graeci 
was  in  process  of  publication — to  have  a  share,  however 
slight,  in  preparing  such  a  work  was  no  slight  privilege  to 
Erasmus  —  he  left  Venice  for  Padua,  where  he  attended  the 
lectures  of  Musurus  and  mingled  in  the  learned  society  of 
the  famous  University — "  locupletissimum  optimarum  discipli- 
narum  emporium,"  he  calls  it.  He  formed  a  good  opinion 
of  the  integrity  and  seriousness  of  the  Paduan  humanists. 

Erasmus  had  again  taken  charge  of  a  pupil,  a  son  of 
James  IV  of  Scotland,  the  youthful  Archbishop  of  St  Andrews. 
Going  by  Ferrara  and  Siena  he  reached  Rome  on  March  i,  1509. 
Once  more,  it  would  be  interesting  to  find  in  his  letters  or 
writings — then  or  subsequently — traces  of  some  deep  impression 
made  upon  him  by  the  ruins  of  Rome.  But  there  is,  in  effect, 
nothing.  On  the  other  hand,  the  dignity  of  the  scholarly  society 
in  which  he  at  once  took  his  place,  was  wholly  to  his  liking. 
He  did  not  fail  to  remark,  however,  the  divorce  between  learned 
Churchmen  and  the  Christian  spirit,  which  was  nowhere  more 
noticeable  than  in  the  Rome  of  Julius  II.     "  Rome,"  he  says, 

w.  2 


1 8  Third  Visit  to  England,   1509 

"  is  nothing  but  a  site  strewn  with  ruins  and  remains — monu- 
ments of  disaster  and  decay take  away  the  papal  See  and 

the  papal  Court — would  Rome  to-day  be  more  than  a  name?" 
To  Erasmus,  full  of  conviction  that  the  genius  of  Ancient  Rome 
was  still  the  unique  force  of  civilisation,  there  was  no  attraction 
in  the  picturesqueness  of  its  fallen  greatness.  The  libraries  of 
Rome  were  open  to  him,  and  Cardinals  and  Secretaries  vied 
with  one  another  in  shewing  him  kindness :  though  he  is,  per- 
haps, a  little  too  anxious  to  impress  his  northern  friends  with 
the  fact.  Raphael  was  at  work  in  the  Vatican,  Michelangelo  in 
the  Sistine  Chapel,  and  Erasmus  may  well  have  seen  both  of 
them  there.  But  in  the  presence  of  the  glowing  noon-day  of 
Italian  art  he  remains  untouched.  Nor  do  the  scenery,  the 
light,  the  colour,  the  vegetation  of  the  southern  land  affect  him. 
He  moves  through  all  these  things  as  a  student,  an  observer 
of  human  life,  seeing  much  that,  apparently,  he  does  not  notice, 
yet,  perhaps,  also  acquiring  much  that  he  does  not  overtly 
record. 

But  when  Erasmus  hastened  north  again  in  the  spring  of 
1509  to  greet  the  new  King  Henry  of  England  we  know  that 
he  went  out  of  Italy  a  different  man.  He  had  come  into  direct 
relations  with  the  princes  of  the  Church,  and  had  watched  the 
working  of  the  great  ecclesiastical  machine,  with  no  enthusiasm 
but  without  serious  moral,  repulsion.  He  had  established  his 
own  status  by  acquiring  an  Italian  degree.  He  had  entered 
into  intimate  relations  with  scholars,  editors,  and  publishers, 
and  had  been  admitted  by  them  to  a  place  in  the  inner  circle 
of  European  scholarship.  He  had  gained,  what  he  specially 
came  to  gain,  a  sound  working  knowledge  of  Greek.  His  new 
edition  of  the  Adagia  proved  him  to  be  a  learned  man  and 
a  versatile  student  of  ancient  literature ;  but  Erasmus  was 
now  more  than  that  He  was  almost  alone  in  the  gift  of 
bringing  all  he  learnt  to  bear  upon  his  view  of  human  life. 
When  he  reached  England  in  July,  1509,  he  brought  with 
him  not   a  little   of  the  practicality   of  a   keen-sighted   and 


Erasmus  at  Cambridge,    1510  19 

accomplished  man  of  the  world.  This  too  in  the  main  he 
owed  to  Italy. 

The  accession  of  Henry  VIII  was  regarded,  not  in  England 
only,  as  an  event  of  the  highest  importance  to  humanity. 
"  What  may  we  not  expect  from  a  prince  of  so  extraordinary — 
almost  divine — a  character?  How  like  a  hero  he  appears  to 
us,  with  what  prudence  he  bears  himself,  what  love  he  shows 

for  truth  and  justice,  what  favour  to  men  of  letters If 

you  could  but  see  how  wild  with  joy  everyone  here  is... the 

very  earth  dances,  the  earth  flows  with  milk  and  honey 

Our  King  is  ambitious,  although  not  for  gold,  but  for  excellence, 
for  fame,  for  immortality!"  It  is  not  easy  for  us  to  realise 
with  what  sanguine  hopes  men  regarded  the  advent  of  the  new 
reign.  The  culture  of  Italy,  the  wealth  of  Spain,  the  peaceful 
arts  of  trade  and  exploration — were  all  bound  up  in  the 
accession  of  the  young  king.  Erasmus  was  summoned  from 
Rome  to  be  the  representative  of  the  new  learning.  It  was  in 
the  same  year  that  Colet  worked  out  his  scheme  for  a  great 
school  of  St  Paul's.  In  this  year  also  the  conflict,  significant 
of  a  far  fiercer  struggle,  which  raged  around  the  person  of 
Reuchlin,  was  stirred  up  in  Germany. 

Erasmus  found  a  home  at  Cambridge,  where  in  15 10  he 
was  made  Lady  Margaret  Professor  of  Divinity,  and  took  up 
his  residence  at  Queens'  College.  He  seems  also  to  have 
done  a  little  teaching,  public  and  private,  in  Greek ;  though  his 
success  in  enlisting  interest  in  the  subject  was  disappointingly 
small.  Apart  from  this  far  from  exacting  occupation  Erasmus 
worked  hard  during  the  five  years  he  spent  in  England.  First 
of  all,  soon  after  his  arrival  he  prepared  and  sent  to  the  Press 
from  More's  house  in  London,  the  Moriae  Encomium  or  Praise 
of  Folly  (1509),  that  extraordinary  satire  upon  the  life  of  his 
day  which  he  had  conceived  and  partly  worked  out  during 
his  recent  journeys  across  Europe.  The  monk,  the  scholastic 
theologian,  the  courtier,  the  dominant  types  of  mankind  in 
Erasmus'  immediate  world,  are,  especially,  depicted  with  keen 


20  His   Writings  upon  Education 

insight  and  biting  sarcasm.  Like  almost  everything  that 
Erasmus  wrote,  it  was  a  sermon  for  the  times,  and  a  potent 
solvent  of  accepted  stupidity  and  pretence.  No  book  of 
Erasmus  had  so  instant  recognition,  such  striking  effect  on 
opinion.  Here  was  a  man  who  not  only  knew  his  books,  but 
knew  his  world  not  less. 

Apart  from  the  Praise  of  Folly,  the  literary  activity  of 
Erasmus  lay  mainly  in  two  different  directions.  In  the  first 
place  he  was  stimulated  by  Colet's  interest  in  his  new  school 
to  a  definite  concern  in  education.  For  four  years  he  was  in 
constant  communication  with  the  Dean,  guiding  him  in  choice 
of  books  and  men.  Certain  important  contributions  to  the 
work  of  teaching  were  made  by  Erasmus  immediately  for 
Colet's  behoof.  We  need  only  mention  here  the  tract  De 
Ratione  Studii  (of  which  a  version  is  given  in  the  present 
volume),  which  he  sent  to  Colet  in  1511.  It  is  based  perhaps 
upon  the  recollection  of  his  own  experience  of  teaching  in 
Paris  and  Italy.  The  work  on  Latin  composition,  which  he 
called  after  a  phrase  of  Quintilian  De  Copia  Rerum  et 
Verborum,  was  issued  in  the  same  year.  This  is  a  very  re- 
markable storehouse  of  material  for  rhetorical  uses,  the  product 
of  five-and-twenty  years  of  observation  of  the  style,  usages, 
figures,  and  sentence-forms  of  the  classical  authors.  The 
work  deserves  much  more  careful  attention  than  has  been 
devoted  to  it  during  the  past  two  hundred  years,  but  the  great 
Latinists  of  the  i6th  and  17th  centuries  owed  to  it  the  same 
debt  that  Erasmus,  Melanchthon,  and  Budaeus  admitted  as 
due  from  themselves  to  Valla.  Erasmus  issued  also  a  small 
metrical  compendium  of  rules  of  conduct  known  by  the  name 
of  the  Cato  pro  Pueris  or  Disticha  Catonis,  printed  by  Wynkyn 
de  Worde  in  15 13.  The  Concio  de  Puero  Jesu,  an  Oration  in 
honour  of  the  Child  Jesus,  was  composed  for  recitation  by  the 
scholars  of  St  Paul's.  Erasmus  was,  like  Colet,  already  deeply 
considering  the  right  methods  of  training  little  children  and 
the  provision  of  sound  aids  to  teaching  rudiments.     Thus  in 


His   Writings  upon  Education  21 

15 13  at  the  request  of  William  Lily,  the  High  Master  of  the 
school,  he  revised  the  little  text-book  of  elementary  Latin 
syntax,  intended  to  supplement  the  Accidence  which  had  ap- 
peared a  year  or  two  before  under  Lily's  own  name.  This  went 
through  a  large  number  of  editions  in  Erasmus'  lifetime ;  the 
Giunta  and  Aldine  Presses,  printers  at  Cracow,  at  Deventer, 
Vienna,  Paris,  poured  editions  on  to  the  market.  It  survives 
in  a  greatly  altered  form  in  the  Eton  Latin  Grammar  of  our 
own  day.  The  usual  title  of  the  book  in  the  i6th  century 
was  De  Construdione  octo  Partium  Orattonts  Libellus.  The 
Institutum  Hominis  C/irisiiani,  or  the  Elements  of  Christian 
Training,  is  a  Latin  metrical  version  of  the  greater  part  of 
Colet's  Cathecyzon,  or  rudiments  of  religion,  a  little  manual 
of  faith  and  conduct,  written  in  simple  direct  language,  which 
he  set  forth  for  use  in  his  school  of  St  Paul's.  We  may 
mention  two  other  products  of  the  Cambridge  period  :  the 
Latin  version  of  Theodore  Gaza's  Greek  Grammar,  which 
we  know  that  Erasmus  used  at  Cambridge,  and  which  was 
published  in  Basel  ( 1 5 1 6)  a  few  months  after  he  left  England. 
To  Henry  VHI  he  dedicated  (15 12)  a  translation  of  a  treatise 
of  Plutarch  (from  the  Moralia)  upon  the  Distinction  between 
a  Flatterer  and  a  Friend;  and  he  completed  another  from  the 
same  source  :  On  the  Art  of  keeping  oneself  in  Health.  Both 
had  a  certain  educational  reference.  Erasmus,  it  is  evident, 
revealed  at  this  time  a  special  interest  in  schools  and  in- 
struction. His  residence  at  Cambridge,  therefore,  with  its 
opportunities  for  intercourse  with  Colet,  is  particularly  im- 
portant from  the  p>oint  of  view  of  the  present  study  of  Erasmus 
in  relation  to  the  progress  of  educational  thought  and  practice. 
Cambridge,  moreover,  enabled  Erasmus  to  bring  towards 
completion  two  great  enterprises  in  the  field  which  he  hence- 
forward claimed  to  be  peculiarly  his  own,  that  of  the  application 
of  scholarship  to  historical  Christianity.  I  refer  to  the  edition 
of  the  Letters  of  Jerome,  and  the  text  of  the  Greek  Testament. 
The  former  had  been  for  twenty  years  the  subject  to  which 


2  2         Eras7nus  and  the  Greek  Testament 

Erasmus  had  always  turned  with  keen  interest.  Jerome  repre- 
sented for  Erasmus  all  that  was  most  learned,  sober,  eloquent 
in  Christian  theology.  To  produce  an  edition  worthy  of  the 
great  Latin  Father  was  an  ever-present  ambition.  Thus  on 
hearing  that  the  printing-house  of  Froben,  at  Basel,  successor 
to  the  great  Amerbach,  was  ready  to  undertake  at  their  own 
cost  the  issue  of  this  favourite  child  of  his  scholarship,  Erasmus 
left  England  (15 14)  and  made  his  way  thither. 

Between  15 14  and  15 17  Erasmus  can  scarcely  be  said  to 
have  had  a  settled  home.  The  true  centre  of  his  interests  lay 
in  Basel,  where  from  1515  onwards  Froben  and  his  partners 
were  engaged  not  only  upon  the  two  great  works  just  mentioned, 
but  upon  several  others  from  Erasmus'  pen.  In  1515  the 
Epistolae  Obscuroruni  Virorum  appeared  in  Germany.  They 
were,  naturally  enough,  ascribed  to  the  author  of  the  Moriae 
Encomium,  and  the  whilom  translator  of  Lucian :  though 
Erasmus  was  anxious  to  disown  any  share  in  this  famous  jeu 
d'esprit,  he  admits  that  he  never  laughed  at  anything  so  help- 
lessly in  his  life.  But  he  was  just  now  writing  the  dedication 
of  his  two  great  works  to  Leo  X  and  Warham,  and  outwardly 
was  in  a  serious  mood.  The  Greek  Testament,  with  all  its 
importance  as  the  Editio  Princeps  of  the  original  text,  is  still 
far  from  being  a  scholarly  recension.  Textual  criticism  of 
Greek  authors  was  still  in  an  embryo  stage.  Manuscript 
sources  were  very  imperfectly  known,  and  the  particular  codices 
used  by  Erasmus  were  not  of  importance  as  authorities.  The 
importance  of  the  edition  lies  in  the  motive  and  method  which 
it  reveals.  To  go  back  to  the  origins, — that  was  invariably 
Erasmus'  principle  :  to  get  behind  the  gloss  of  the  grammarian 
to  the  plain  text  of  the  author,  behind  the  gloss  of  the  dialectic 
theologian  to  the  actual  teaching  of  the  apostolic  age.  To  be 
afraid  of  facts  was  superstition  and  the  denial  of  the  prerogative 
of  human  reason.  In  relation  to  this  general  principle  we  are 
concerned  indirectly,  at  least,  with  the  attitude  of  Erasmus  to 
the  monuments  of  historical  divinity. 


The  '  Colloquies '  2  3 


Part  of  the  period  to  which  reference  has  just  been  made 
(15 1 5-1 5 19)  was  spent  at  Louvain  with  visits  to  London  and 
Brussels.  Francis  I  had  in  15 15  ascended  the  French  throne, 
amid  such  hopes  as  had  been  stirred  in  England  a  few  years 
ago.  The  great  Budaeus  wrote  from  Paris  to  Erasmus  offering 
him,  apparently  on  the  new  king's  behalf,  a  position  of  dis- 
tinction and  a  rich  benefice.  This  offer  came  to  nothing ;  but 
Erasmus  accepted  (15 16)  a  sinecure  post  as  Counsellor  to 
Charles  I  of  Spain,  who  became  later  the  Emperor  Charles  V. 
Whereupon  Erasmus  indited  for  his  behoof  the  Institutio 
Principis  Chris tiaiit,  a  tract  treating  of  T/ie  Duties  of  Kingship. 
The  work  has  no  very  great  interest  in  relation  to  education  in 
general,  but  in  spite  of  its  inevitably,  but  reasonably,  laudatory 
tone,  it  expresses  clearly  the  views  which  Erasmus  and  More 
had  in  common  on  government,  peace,  and  the  functions  of  a 
true  king.  It  was  held  in  high  esteem  by  a  man  of  so  practical 
temper  as  Sir  Thomas  Elyot,  who  urges  that  it  should  be  "  as 
familiar  alway  with  gentlemen  at  all  times  and  in  every  age  as 
was  Homer  with  the  great  King  Alexander  or  Xenophon  with 
Scipio.... There  never  was  book  written  in  Latin  that,  in  so 
little  a  portion,  contained  of  sentence,  eloquence,  and  virtuous 
exhortation  a  more  compendious  abundance."  In  the  same 
year,  15 16,  Froben  published  the  famous  collection  of  dia- 
logues on  incidents  of  daily  life  and  intercourse  known  as  the 
Colloquies  under  the  title  of  Colloquiorum  Formulae.  They 
had  been  written  by  Erasmus  from  time  to  time  as  exercises  in 
the  teaching  of  conversational  Latin.  Some  of  them  date 
back  to  the  days  of  his  tutoring  work  in  Paris  twenty  years 
previously.  In  their  definitive  form  in  the  Basel  edition  of 
1523  they  contain  Erasmus'  riper  views  on  a  wide  range  of 
topics ;  and  not  a  few  are  directly  concerned  with  his  ideas  on 
training  and  instruction.  The  whole  volume,  however,  is 
evidence  of  Erasmus'  method  of  uniting  scholarship  with 
didactic  purpose  :  what  was  begun  as  an  aid  to  composition, 
has  developed  into  a  manual  of  comment  on  Hfe  and  conduct. 


24  Louvain 

It  was  full  of  satire  on  obscurantism  in  the  fields  of  religion 
and  knowledge,  and  in  the  changed  atmosphere  induced  by 
the  Lutheran  conflict  it  roused  the  suspicion  of  the  authorities. 
The  condemation  of  the  Colloquia  by  the  University  of  Paris, 
as  undermining  to  the  Faith,  led  to  its  almost  universal 
adoption  as  a  school  book  in  schools  influenced  by  the 
Reform.  The  result  was  that  no  book  of  Erasmus,  nor  even 
the  Moria,  had  so  wide  a  vogue.  It  was  pirated  in  every 
country  in  Europe. 

In  15 17  Erasmus  was  busily  engaged  in  advising  upon  the 
organisation  of  the  new  Collegium  Trilingue  at  Louvain,  a 
school  or  college  intended  to  establish  liberal  learning  upon  an 
assured  footing.  Hebrew,  Greek  and  Latin  formed  the  cur- 
riculum, and  scholars  of  the  highest  repute  were  sought  for  it. 
It  is  interesting  to  note  the  collocation  of  the  three  languages. 
This  had  as  a  fact  little  or  no  theological  significance.  It  was 
due  much  more  to  the  conception  of  the  philological  importance 
of  Hebrew  as  the  primitive  language,  and  of  the  light  which 
the  study  of  it  might  throw  upon  the  classical  tongues. 
Erasmus  clearly  found  much  to  attract  him  in  Louvain  at  this 
time.  But  he  met  the  offer  of  a  chair  in  the  new  Collegium 
with  a  prompt  refusal ;  no  doubt  it  was  hardly  expected  that  he 
would  accept  even  a  titular  responsibility,  much  as  he  enjoyed 
giving  advice  on  the  election  of  the  professors  and  framing  the 
schemes  of  study.  In  15 19  he  determined  to  settle  in  Louvain 
amongst  friends  so  congenial  to  his  pursuits.  For  the  Univer- 
sity city  was  a  centre  of  keen  intellectual  life,  well  placed  for 
meeting  scholars,  and  not  less  so  for  visits  to  France,  England 
or  the  Rhinelands.  Moreover  it  contained  several  printers  of 
repute,  so  that  about  this  time  we  find  Erasmus  issuing  many 
editions  of  his  smaller  works  from  Louvain.  And  in  spite  of 
piracies  his  income  from  publishers  must  have  been  con- 
siderable. 

The  stirrings  of  the  German  revolt  from  Rome  opened  a 
new  chapter  in  the  career  of  Erasmus.     His  attitude  to  the 


Beginnings  of  the  Reform  25 

earlier  controversies  of  the  Reformation  has  been  frequently 
and  elaborately  argued,  and  only  indirectly  concerns  us  here. 
This  at  least  must  be  said.  The  Lutheran  conflict  brought 
Erasmus  much  anxiety  and  no  little  misfortune  during  his  life. 
But  it  is  still  more  certain  that  it  did  equal  injury  to  his  fame 
after  death,  in  that  it  has  thrown  his  master-aims  and  activity 
into  wrong  perspective  in  the  eyes  of  his  critics  and  bio- 
graphers. Erasmus  was  not  a  Dogmatist,  still  less  an  eccle- 
siastic or  politician,  least  of  all  a  fighting  partisan.  He  was  a 
scholar,  a  teacher  preparing  well-sifted  authorities  foi"  others  to 
make  such  use  of  as  the  changing  needs  of  the  times  might 
demand.  Unfortunately  for  himself  he  had  a  keen  scent  for 
self-deception  in  loudly  vocal  people,  and  a  pretty  trick  of  style 
in  exposing  it.  But  it  is  true  to  say  that  the  only  region  in 
which  he  had  any  thought-out  system  to  offer  for  guidance  of 
a  practical  world  was  the  region  of  Latin  scholarship  and 
of  education.  And  Erasmus  knew  it.  His  shrinking  from 
partisan  declarations  was  but  the  recognition  of  the  fact  that 
both  in  theological  dialectic  and  in  ecclesiastico-political  fight- 
ing, the  two  dominant  sides  of  the  Lutheran  struggle,  he  was 
no  expert,  and  had  neither  the  gifts  nor  inclinations  to  become 
one.  So  far  as  ideals  went,  Lutheran  separatism  was  utterly 
distasteful  to  him.  He  was  for  his  years  an  old  man,  of  un- 
certain health  ;  but  Erasmus  can  only  be  called  a  coward  by 
those  to  whom  partisanship  is  the  one  note  of  courage. 

Louvain  did  not  escape  the  clouds  and  thunder  of  the 
"great  Day  of  the  Lord."  Always  prone  to  a  restless  desire 
for  change,  Erasmus  persuaded  himself  that  he  must  go  in 
search  of  a  quieter  atmosphere,  where  pronouncements  on  the 
controversy  would  not  be  expected  of  him.  This  haven  of 
peace  he  decided  that  he  would  best  find  at  Basel  under  the 
shelter  of  the  Frobenhaus.  There  in  the  spring  of  1522  he 
was  welcomed  by  his  old  friends,  and  there  he  installed  himself 
in  the  home  where  he  spent  the  happiest  period  of  his  later 
life.     He  had  now  entered  upon  the  last  stage  of  his  vigorous 


26  Erasmus  and  Luther 

and  productive  career.  The  Lutheran  trouble,  indeed,  pursued 
him  in  spite  of  his  flight  from  it.  He  had  hoped  great  things 
from  the  election  of  Adrian  VI  (1522)  as  successor  to  Leo  X. 
For  the  Archbishop  of  Utrecht,  though  as  a  Pope  he  was  a 
failure,  was  a  man  of  very  different  type  to  the  Borgia,  the 
Rovere,  and  the  Medici.  Erasmus  had  known  him  well  and 
respected  him  for  his  sincere  life  and  his  solid  intellectual  gifts. 
Through  Adrian  he  was  led  to  take  an  overt  part  in  the 
pamphlet  warfare  now  raging.  His  tract  on  Free  Will  set  out 
with  excellent  temper  his  view  of  human  nature  in  relation  to 
the  Divine  Will.  As  we  should  expect,  he  is  not  very  forcible 
in  taking  up  a  controversial  position ;  he  sees,  here  as  else- 
where, both  sides  of  the  question.  But  he  believed,  and  had 
always  believed,  that  the  human  spirit  is  by  creation  not  merely 
capable  of,  but  prone  to,  a  rational  and  wholesome  activity. 
His  spiritual  analysis  was  never  deep :  Plutarchian,  perhaps,  in 
its  plain  common-sense  method.  Thus  Erasmus  was  an  easy 
victim  to  Luther's  dialectic  :  as  Luther  said  of  the  controversy, 
"  it  was  as  easy  as  it  was  disagreeable  to  confute  so  superficial 
a  treatise  from  so  profound  a  scholar."  But  the  duel  waxed 
hotter.  Erasmus  quickly  became  "  that  poisonous  serpent 
Erasmus  of  Rotterdam."  Melanchthon  was  invoked  from 
Basel  to  mitigate  the  harshness  of  the  conflict.  But  the  young 
man  of  24,  a  scholar  no  less  than  his  correspondent,  saw,  what 
Erasmus  was  never  to  see,  that  the  problem  of  the  new  age 
was  not  to  be  solved  by  scholarship  alone.  The  result  of  it  all 
was  that  Erasmus  drew  insensibly  nearer  to  the  Roman  side. 
He  was  ageing  rapidly,  and  was  unable  to  face  the  illimitable 
possibilities  involved  in  the  collapse  of  that  ancient  ecclesi- 
astical order  which  meant  to  him,  as  we  shall  see,  so  much 
besides  itself.  His  real  abiding  interests  remained  steadily  to 
the  fore ;  he  resolutely  put  aside  the  controversy,  which  in  its 
methods  absolutely,  and  in  large  measure  in  its  aims,  was 
repellent  to  him. 

The  Basel  period  (1522-1529)  was,  therefore,  mainly  given 


The  '  Ciceronianus '  27 

to  literary  activity.  Of  interest  in  the  field  of  pure  scholar- 
ship we  have  the  Ciceronianus  (1528),  a  dialogue  on  Latinity 
in  which  Erasmus  appeals  for  a  living  Roman  speech  fit  to 
be  the  vehicle  of  expression  for  modern  needs  and  practical 
life.  He  had  begun  to  interest  himself  in  the  discussion  as 
to  the  limits  of  Imitation  in  style  in  1526,  and  had  no  doubt 
watched  with  amusement  the  controversy  on  the  subject  which 
had  arisen  in  Italy  so  far  back  as  the  day  of  Poliziano  and 
Cortesius.  He  ridiculed,  with  his  own  peculiar  sting,  the 
mere  Ciceronian  who  had  reduced  Latin  to  a  purely  imitative 
language,  relying  on  the  accident  of  Cicero's  vocabulary  or 
usage  of  inflectional  forms.  Erasmus'  instinct  was  perfectly 
right  in  perceiving  that  such  a  canon  implied  the  death  of 
Latin  as  an  instrument  for  modern  life.  But  though  he  could 
appeal  to  such  scholars  as  Poliziano  and  Pico,  he  roused 
against  himself  fierce  controversialists  of  the  younger  type, 
like  Julius  Caesar  Scaliger  and  Etienne  Dolet,  with  the  whole 
school  of  Padua.  The  unfortunate  champion  of  common-sense 
was  battered  by  a  vituperation  which  had  a  truly  theologic 
wealth  of  epithet  and  innuendo'.  The  treatise  De  Recta 
Latitii  Graecique  Servwnis  Fronunciatione,  which  was  regarded 
as  the  last  word  upon  the  subject  of  Greek  pronunciation,  for 
northern  peoples  at  least,  appeared  in  the  same  year.  His 
work  on  Christian  Matrimony,  Itistitutio  Christiani  Matri- 
monii, had,  like  the  De  Re  Uxoria  of  Francesco  Barbaro 
written  just  a  century  before,  a  section — perhaps  in  each  case 
the  most  interesting  part  of  the  work — on  the  bringing  up  of 
children.  This  dialogue  is  our  best  source  for  insight  into 
Erasmus'  thoughts  on  girls'  education.  In  1529  he  printed 
also  the  De  Pueris  statini  ac  liberaliter  instituendis,  the 
ripest  of  his  educational  tracts,  which  is  contained,  in  an 
English  dress,  in  the  present  volume.  Meantime  he  was 
applying  himself  still  with  marvellous  energy,  under  stress  of 
grievous  bodily  pain,  to  the  origins  of  Christianity.  The 
1  Upon  the  import  of  Ciceronianism  see  infra,  p.  51. 


28  Last   Years 

Paraphrases,  or  free  Latin  versions  of  the  Gospels,  had  been 
begun  at  Louvain  or  Cambridge,  and  were  all  published  by 
1524.  They  met  with  signal  condemnation  at  the  hands  of 
controversialists  of  both  camps.  The  works  of  St  Ambrose 
were  printed  in  the  year  of  Froben's  death  (1527);  the  entire 
works  of  St  Augustine  in  1528-9  in  ten  folio  volumes;  St 
Chrysostom  in  five  volumes  in  1530.  These  dates  will  serve 
to  indicate  the  untiring  industry  with  which  Erasmus  kept  his 
printers  employed,  although  Erasmus'  actual  editing  in  some 
cases  was  but  slight.  The  year  of  1532  saw  the  publication  of 
the  great  edition  of  the  Comedies  of  Terence,  always  Erasmus' 
favourite  classic :  this  is,  perhaps,  the  most  valuable,  in  a 
critical  sense,  of  his  classical  recensions. 

Froben  died  in  1527  :  his  death  was  a  great  personal  loss 
to  Erasmus,  although  the  work  of  the  printing-house  did  not 
slacken.  This  event,  coupled  with  the  spread  to  Basel  and 
the  upper  Rhine  of  the  Reformation  controversy,  provoked 
once  more  the  wandering  spirit  in  Erasmus.  It  is  not  other- 
wise easy  to  explain  his  removal  to  Freiburg  in  1529.  For  he 
had  been  probably  happier  at  Basel  than  he  had  been  any- 
where else  since  he  left  England  in  15 14.  He  had  friends, 
repute,  congenial  work,  and  adequate  means,  in  spite  of  his 
confessed  bad  management  in  affairs.  The  atmosphere  of  the 
city  was  tolerant  yet  keen.  But  he  fled  to  the  strongly 
Catholic  Imperial  city  which  stands  on  the  edge  of  the  Black 
Forest,  where  the  hills  sink  to  the  broad  plain  of  the  Rhine. 
There  he  hoped,  he  tells  us,  to  find  a  more  peaceful  home, 
where  no  one  would  pester  him  to  interest  himself  in  the 
conflicts  of  the  day.  But  the  Diet  of  Augsburg  sat  in  the 
following  year  (1530),  and  Erasmus  began  to  moot  the  project 
of  going  still  further  away  from  such  centres  of  disturbance,  to 
Italy  perhaps,  or  at  least  to  Burgundy.  The  old  restlessness 
was  not  to  be  laid,  and  it  was  steadily  aggravated  by  the  nature 
of  his  illness.  It  was  no  special  mark  of  discontent  or  irrita- 
bility, as  some  biographers  represent  it,   but  the  revolt  of  a 


Death  of  Erasmus,   1536  29 

temper  passionately  devoted  to  study  against  all  that  seemed  to 
hinder  him  from  the  highest  level  of  productive  energy.  In 
1536  he  declares  Basel  to  be  after  all  a  better  residence  than 
Freiburg,  and  is  once  more  welcomed  by  the  Froben  circle, 
the  best  friends  left  to  him,  for  Colet  and  More,  the  gracious 
figures  of  his  brighter  time,  were  already  dead.  In  the  very 
last  year  of  his  life  he  sent  to  the  press  the  Ecclesiastes,  a 
significant  work,  so  reasonable,  and,  in  the  best  sense.  Evan- 
gelical in  tone,  on  the  Office  of  the  Christian  Preacher,  followed 
by  his  edition  of  Origen.  Working  "  till  death  itself  wrested 
the  pen  from  his  hand,"  he  ended  his  strenuous  life  on  July  12, 
1536- 


CHAPTER    II. 

CHARACTERISTICS. 
§  I.     Erasmus  and  Antiquity. 

It  is  a  proof  of  the  intimate  relation  which  subsisted 
between  the  Revival  of  Learning  and  the  social  milieu  which 
rendered  it  possible,  that  a  hundred  years  intervened  between 
the  residence  of  Chrysoloras  at  Florence  and  the  beginnings 
of  Greek  studies  in  Paris  or  Oxford.  The  formative  epoch  of 
the  Renaissance,  the  Quattrocento,  was  over  before  the 
northern  peoples  were  fit  to  receive  it,  or  were  able  to  assimi- 
late it,  and  reproduce  it  in  the  special  shape  which  the  history 
and  genius  of  each  nationality  determined. 

Of  the  various  factors,  differing  in  origin  and  character, 
which  constitute  the  movement  to  which  we  give  the  title  of 
Renaissance,  the  impulse  to  revive  the  form  and  the  spirit  of 
the  antique  world  was  but  one.  In  Italy  by  virtue  of  causes 
readily  intelligible  this  factor  of  the  Renaissance  filled  a  larger 
space  and  had  subtler  effects  than  in  northern  countries.  One 
reason  for  this  difference  is,  no  doubt,  that  the  undue  self- 
consciousness,  with  the  consequent  artificiality  and  affectation, 
which  mark  the  Italian  Revival,  had,  so  to  say,  worn  through  to 
the  surface  before  the  translation  of  the  new  ideal  of  culture 
beyond  the  Alps.  For  in  Italy  itself,  by  the  time  that  the 
fifteenth  century  had  reached  its  close,  the  more  vigorous 
minds  had  already  shed,  or  were  shedding,  the  encumbrance 
of  mere  imitativeness.     In  language,   in  art,   in   building,   in 


The  Function  of  Antiquity  31 

literary  form  and  in  political  thought,  a  truly  new  world  had 
begun  to  arise.  Amid  the  vast  material  which  the  past  century 
had  heaped  together  with  such  industry  and  enthusiasm  the 
genius  of  Da  Vinci,  of  Machiavelli  and  Michelangelo  was  busy 
sorting  and  re-ordering ;  not  now  with  the  purpose  of  re-erect- 
ing in  patient  obedience  the  monuments  of  antiquity,  but  to 
create  a  dwelling  for  the  modern  spirit.  Now  it  was  the  fact 
that  Germany  and  Western  Europe  were  socially  and  politically 
a  hundred  years  behind  Venice  or  Florence,  that  enabled  them 
to  receive  the  impulse  of  the  Renaissance  at  the  stage  when 
its  true  vitalising  force  began  to  stand  out  from  the  immaturities 
of  its  early  development. 

The  career  of  Erasmus  covers  exactly  this  period  of  tran- 
sition. His  powerful  intellect,  of  a  markedly  objective  and 
receptive  type,  was  well-fitted  to  be  the  instrument  of  conveying 
and  interpreting  a  many-sided  movement  of  the  human  spirit. 
Like  the  Revival  itself,  he  too  passed  through — as  an  ardent 
student,  perhaps,  must  always  pass — his  period  of  idolatry,  of 
imitation,  of  conscious  affectations.  The  years  of  his  youth 
and  early  manhood  partly  coincided  with  the  reign  of  scholar- 
ship of  that  type.  But  with  him  also  this  was  but  a  stage  in 
development.  Gradually  the  New  Learning  became  to  him  an 
instrument  of  life,  actual  and  modern ;  a  thing  of  use,  to  be 
adapted  to  intelligible  needs,  a  source  of  illumination  amid  the 
hard  experiences  of  ordinary  men.  In  his  maturity  Erasmus 
showed  himself  a  man  of  practical  aims,  with  whom  wisdom 
and  scholarship  were  means  to  social  well-being. 

It  is  the  problem  of  Erasmus'  personality  to  determine  the 
relative  place  occupied  in  it,  first  by  religion  and  next  by 
humanist  impulse,  and  to  understand  the  nature  of  the  recon- 
ciliation at  which  he  arrived.  Neither  of  these  two  currents  of 
interest  was  at  any  time  in  his  life  operative  to  the  exclusion 
of  the  other.  But  it  is  true  to  say  that  up  to  the  time  of 
quitting  Stein  in  1493,  at  the  age  of  26  or  27,  his  pre-occu- 
pations  had  been  in  the  main  with  religion ;  and  that  for  the 


32  Erasmus  and  Antiquity 

next  twenty  years,  a  stage  in  his  development  even  more 
critical,  he  was  absorbed  in  the  study  of  the  ancient  literatures. 
It  would  be  impossible  to  account  for  the  unexpected  evidences 
of  mediaeval  sentiment  and  ways  of  thought  even  in  the 
maturity  of  his  powers,  when  the  monastic  concept  of  life  had 
become  wholly  abhorrent,  had  we  not  before  us  the  fact  of  the 
contented  life  which  for  ten  years  he  led  as  an  Augustinian 
monk.  In  the  same  way  the  intensity  of  his  first  humanist 
enthusiasm  may  explain  certain  odd  inconsistencies  in  his  view 
of  the  place  to  be  filled  by  the  antique  in  the  modern  world. 
That  it  is  impossible  to  "classify"  Erasmus  was  reluctantly 
admitted  by  his  friends  and  by  his  enemies  long  before  he 
died ;  it  has  remained  impossible  ever  since.  His  personality 
indeed  is  more  complex  than  his  contemporaries  knew.  But 
the  Age  itself  was  a  strange  conflict  of  Old  and  New, -of  un- 
reconciled forces,  of  methods  and  of  aims  alike  uncertain. 
And  the  receptivity  of  Erasmus'  nature  made  it  inevitable  that 
he  should  reflect  the  contradictions  which  indeed  his  training 
and  environment  worked  into  the  fibre  of  his  spiritual  self 

The  presumptions  involved  in  the  Christian  ideals  of 
Erasmus  will  be  touched  upon  later.  We  must  here  estimate 
the  significance  to  him  of  the  concept  of  antiquity  which  he 
found  current  amongst  humanists  when  (about  1493)  he  sur- 
rendered himself  first  to  their  influence.  From  the  writings  of 
Italian  scholars  he  found  that  the  ancient  civilisation  was 
treated  as  the  living  heritage  of  their  nation.  It  was  in  no 
sense  regarded  by  them  as  an  extinct  order.  On  the  contrary, 
it  was  a  Golden  Age,  an  ideal  yet  real  past,  worthy  to  evoke 
both  patriotic  pride  and  eager  imitation.  In  this  ancient 
culture  the  share  of  Rome  was  to  the  humanist  by  far  the 
more  important.  The  function  of  the  scholar  was  to  bring 
home  to  the  citizen  of  Florence  and  Milan  that  Cicero,  Vergil 
and  Augustus  belonged  to  him :  that  in  that  notable  epoch 
were  conceived  and  in  large  part  realised  the  highest  ideals  of 
culture,  of  social  order,  of  justice,  of  peace,  and,  not  least,  of 


Antiquity  a  Golden  Age  33 

human  personality.  To  some  scholars,  indeed,  like  Vittorino, 
the  absence  of  Christian  faith  was  an  indelible  blur  upon  the 
picture ;  to  Beccadelli,  to  Valla,  or  to  the  Roman  Accademia, 
there  was  no  blur.  The  language  of  Rome  was  the  perfection 
of  all  speech ;  the  various  literary  forms  elaborated  in  the 
Augustan  age  were  the  ideals  of  all  composition ;  in  sculpture, 
architecture,  military  art,  in  agriculture  and  all  technical  crafts 
the  Roman  practice,  if  we  could  completely  understand  it, 
would  prove  the  absolute  standard  for  all  time.  There  was  no 
doubt  in  the  mind  of  the  Humanist  that  in  the  literature  of 
Greece  and  Rome  was  contained  all  knowledge  useful  to  man 
in  each  department  of  his  life.  To  reproduce  the  antique 
order  seemed  the  inevitable  corollary  from  such  an  argument ; 
but,  as  Italian  Popes  and  Princes  failed  to  respond  to  the  ideal 
sufficiently  to  induce  political  self-effacement,  the  dreams  of 
scholars  were  restricted  to  restoring  the  realm  of  ancient  know- 
ledge, literature  and  art.     How  did  this  strike  Erasmus  ? 

Let  us  remember  carefully  the  social  environment  in  which 
Erasmus  lived.  The  constant  factors  of  his  experience  were 
unceasing  wars,  plague,  famine,  gross  vice,  coarseness,  cruelty, 
political  tyranny,  indifference  to  spiritual  and  intellectual  light. 
In  the  stir  and  movement  of  the  sense  of  nationality  he  per- 
ceived an  inevitable  hindrance  to  order  and  peace :  local 
character,  ambition,  languages,  were  so  many  barriers  to  unity 
of  culture,  to  progress  through  intercourse,  to  amelioration  of 
common  life.  The  Church  instead  of  commanding  respect 
as  the  symbol  of  a  world-order,  was  debased,  ignorant,  and  a 
source  of  danger.  The  New  Learning,  then,  opens  to  him  a 
window  from  which  he  looks  out  upon  another  world.  Like 
the  Italians  he  recognises  in  it  a  Golden  Age  of  humanity. 
Its  notes  of  distinction  were,  first,  its  universality:  government 
and  order  were  then  secured  to  mankind :  there  was  one  law 
and  uniform  justice :  war  was  impossible.  Again,  language 
was  one,  with  free  intercourse  thereby  opened  between  all 
peoples ;  whilst  Learning  laboured  under  no  obstacles  of  race 
w.  3 


34  Erasmus  and  Antiquity 

and  speech.  It  was  co-extensive  with  civilisation,  the  true 
Humanitas.  Next,  the  material  conditions  of  life  were  favour- 
able even  to  the  poorest.  The  dignity  of  the  City,  the 
prosperity  of  the  country,  were  such  as  no  one  might  realise  in 
the  France  or  Germany  of  his  day.  Lastly,  the  level  of 
attainments,  scientific,  artistic,  or  political,  was  infinitely  in 
advance  of  anything  tl.at  had  been  reached  in  subsequent  ages. 
In  literature  the  supreme  heights  had  been  gained  in  the 
oratory,  poetry,  and  philosophy  of  Greece  and  Rome.  It  was 
possible  to  hope  for  a  gradual  recovery  in  favoured  lands  of  the 
wisdom  and  content  which  the  ancient  world  enjoyed  from 
the  Indus  to  the  Atlantic.  Whether  the  modern  world  could 
attain  to  the  standard  of  culture  reached  by  the  ancients  was 
doubtful.  That  it  should  surpass  it  was  hardly  conceivable, 
though  Erasmus  had  his  sanguine  moments.  In  any  case  the 
way  to  progress  lay  through  the  study  of  the  great  past. 

No  doubt  the  remoteness  in  time  of  the  Roman  empire, 
and,  still  more,  the  lack  of  critical  knowledge  of  its  history  and 
inner  life  conduced  to  easy  idealisation.  Still  we  must  re- 
cognise— it  is  worth  repeating — whence  came  the  impulse  to 
such  belief:  from  a  desire,  never  dormant,  for  a  time  when 
men's  lives  might  be  passed  in  peace  and  order,  and  human 
well-being  rest  on  the  sure  basis  of  enlightenment. 

It  is,  however,  a  misreading  of  the  man  to  ascribe  to  him 
the  dream  of  a  mere  reproduction  of  the  Roman  world  either 
as  a  political  or  as  a  social  system.  Of  the  two  factors  which 
render  such  an  ideal  to  us  unthinkable,  Christianity  and  the 
spirit  of  nationality,  Erasmus  gave  its  due  weight  to  the  first 
alone.  But  that  factor  he  realised  to  the  full.  His  own  keen 
sense  of  reality  saved  him  from  the  affectation  of  neo-paganism 
in  any  of  its  forms.  In  such  revivals  he  saw  only  a  futile 
attempt  to  resuscitate  a  dead  body ;  whereas  his  aim  was 
to  unite  and  reconcile  the  ancient  spirit  with  the  new. 

Now  the  relative  place  to  be  given  to  each  of  these  two 
elements   varies   partly  with    the   stage    of  his   development, 


Its  Application  to  Modern  Europe         35 

partly  with  his  mood,  or  the  precise  object  with  which  he 
writes.  We  cannot  formulate  a  consistent  doctrine  from  his 
writings  or  his  practice.  But  the  uniform  belief  of  his  working 
life  may  be  thus  expressed.  A  thorough  study  of  ancient 
literature  could,  as  nothing  else,  enlarge  knowledge  and  elevate 
human  motives.  Acquaintance  with  the  history  and  political 
writings  of  Greece  and  Rome  would  tend  to  raise  the  standard 
of  government  and  to  stimulate  patriotic  duty.  By  widening 
men's  interests,  by  the  application  of  arts  long  since  lost,  by 
abolishing  war,  by  encouraging  reason  and  illumination, 
society  would  be  lifted  on  to  a  new  plane — and  this  could 
only  be  effected  by  harking  back  to  the  wisdom  stored  in  the 
historic  past.  He  believed,  also,  that  Christian  doctrine  could 
not  be  rightly  understood  without  a  rich  acquaintance  with  the 
thought  amid  which  it  first  grew  up.  Finally,  as  the  ancient 
world  held  the  key  to  the  amelioration  of  the  present,  no 
education  of  the  young  was  possible  which  was  not  built  upon 
Greek  and  Roman  models  and  administered  through  classical 
literature  as  its  chief  instruments  But  we  must  not  forget  that 
the  classical  civilisation  was  not,  to  Erasmus,  merely  a  past. 
He  was  unable  to  view  it  as  a  purely  historical  phenomenon. 
It  was  an  ideal  to  be  defended  or  to  be  criticised :  and  modern 
progress  signified  approximation  to  that  ideal,  or  at  least  to 
such  aspects  of  it  as  were  reconcileable  with  the  Christian 
spirit.  Here  comes  in  the  limitation  of  his  outlook  to  which 
allusion  has  been  made  above ;  his  blindness  to  the  true  mark 
of  modern  history,  the  function  of  nationality.  In  his  pas- 
sionate desire  for  the  fruits  of  peace  he  sees  only  in  national 
aspirations  so  many  forces  making  for  war  and  exclusion. 
When  he  concerns  himself  with  current  politics  it  is  mostly 
with  unwillingness  and  fitfully  :  he  longs  in  his  heart  for  a 
republic  of  enlightenment  which  knowing  no  country  shall  be 
coterminous  with  humanity. 

There  is  no  question  that  in  this  ideal  of  a  universal  order 
we  have  also  one  principal  clue  to  the  dread  with  which  he 

3—2 


36  Erasmus  and  Antiquity 

regarded  the  Lutheran  revolt.  If  to  the  barriers  of  political 
system  and  of  vernacular  languages  were  added  an  aggressive 
spiked  fence  of  national  churches  and  theologies,  what  hope 
was  left  for  the  peaceful  advance  of  mankind  ?  The  centri- 
fugal force  of  the  Reformation  dismayed  Erasmus:  for  it  boded 
a  rude  awakening  from  his  dream  of  the  priceless  gift  which 
the  spirit  of  the  ancient  world  was  offering  to  the  new.  And 
this  was  a  humanity  bound  together,  in  one  faith  and  one 
culture,  by  the  bond  of  universal  peace. 

The  appeal  which  Antiquity  made  to  Erasmus  thus  rested, 
in  large  part,  upon  its  aspect  as  a  social  ideal.  But  its  attrac- 
tion can  only  be  fully  accounted  for  by  a  relation  still  more 
intimate:  the  special  sympathy  which  he  felt  for  the  intellectual 
and  moral  temper  of  the  old  civilisation.  In  other  words 
Erasmus  found  in  Antiquity  not  only  a  social  ideal,  but  the 
very  pattern  of  his  own  personal  attitude  to  thought  and 
action.  The  spirit  of  Erasmus  was,  as  has  been  said,  of  the 
type  which  moves  freely  only  amidst  ideas  capable  of  easy 
verification  and  clear  statement ;  mostly  of  a  concrete  order, 
of  direct  human  interest,  of  definite  applicability  to  life  and 
action.  It  is  probable  that  Erasmus  had  little  poetical  feeling 
— his  criticism  of  the  Choruses  of  the  Greek  drama  alone 
implies  as  much^ — nor  do  we  find  in  him  serious  evidence 
of  historical  imagination.  But  we  mus  describe  him  as 
conspicuously  deficient  in  all  that  concerns  philosophical 
speculation,  and  mental  analysis  that  passes  below  the  surface 
of  thought  or  morals.  Thus  he  is  never  really  at  home  with 
Plato;  the  earlier  philosophers  have  no  attraction  for  him. 

^  Erasmus  is  speaking  of  his  versions  of  the  two  plays  of  Euripides 
(1506):  'in  no  other  instance  does  antiquity  appear  to  me  to  have  played 
the  fool  so  much  as  in  this  sort  of  choruses,  in  which  eloquence  was  debased 
by  an  excessive  affectation  of  novelty,  and  in  aiming  at  verbal  miracles  all 
grasp  of  reality  was  lost.'  The  whole  passage  should  be  read:  NichoUs,. 
Epistles,  pp.  431 — 2.  In  1507  Erasmus'  knowledge  of  Greek  wa^  still 
slight,  and  the  chorus  of  a  Greek  play  was  beyond  him. 


The  Mental  Attitude  of  Erasmus  37 

The  great  mediaevalists,  with  their  gropings  after  a  profound 
unifying  concept  in  knowledge,  were  not  properly  appraised  by 
him,  or  by  any  humanist.  The  dogmatic  aspects  of  theology, 
particularly  as  they  became  drawn  into  the  whirlpool  of  the 
Lutheran  controversy,  were  repellent  to  him.  Yet  he  often 
speaks — as  do  all  humanists — of  philosophia  and  sapientia. 
But  in  these  words  he  is  in  effect  referring  to  Cicero,  Seneca, 
or  Plutarch.  "  Philosophy  "  meant  primarily  to  Erasmus  and 
the  Italians  (Ficino,  Pico  and  Sadoleto  are  notable  exceptions) 
the  clear  self-evident  working  morality  current  in  the  best 
minds  of  the  period  between  Caesar  and  the  Antonines.  In 
the  same  way,  "  doctrine  "  was  the  historic  faith  set  out  in  the 
Gospels,  and  the  social  conduct  based  upon  it.  There  is  no 
trace  of  mysticism  in  his  attitude  towards  religion  :  the  quality 
is  wholly  alien  from  his  temperament.  Hence  it  was  not 
difficult  for  him  to  reconcile  the  best  moral  teaching  of  the  old 
world  with  Christianity,  and  to  regard  literature  as,  in  skilful 
hands,  a  practical  guide  to  action.  In  this  he  took  up  the 
ordinary  humanist  position.  The  tolerance  towards  others, 
the  calm  and  reasonable  judgment  of  ourselves,  the  hopeful 
estimate  of  humanity,  which  he  found  in  Plutarch,  were 
peculiarly  characteristic  of  his  objective  way  of  regarding 
human  nature.  Then  it  is  noticeable  that  of  the  Greek  poetic 
or  speculative  spirit,  in  its  deeper  sense,  Erasmus  has  little  or 
nothing.  Lucian  and  Plutarch  he  knows  well.  The  world  of 
Pythagoras,  Aeschylus  or  Plato  is  all  but  closed  to  him.  The 
practical  wisdom  of  the  Roman  statesman-moralist  is  that 
which  is  most  congenial  to  his  temperament,  and  coincides 
most  nearly  with  his  outlook  upon  life. 

Reading  Antiquity  with  these  limitations  the  entire  culture 
of  the  ancients  struck  him  as  marked  by  the  same  intelligi- 
bility, the  same  restraint.  In  politics  as  in  literature  there  was 
a  corresponding  concreteness  and  absence  of  elusive  generals. 
As  contrasted  with  mediaeval  conceptions  in  which  abstractions 
played  so  large — and  to  Erasmus  so  irritating — a  part,  he  found 


38  Erasmus  and  Antiquity 

the  antique  world  singularly  actual,  definite  and  realisable. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  his  instinct  was  sound  so  far  as  it  con- 
cerned Roman  thought.  It  would  even  be  true  to  say  that 
such  Aristotelian  phrases  as  that  of  men  ^u<r«  SoCAot,  or  of 
avTovo/xia,  were  less  doctrines  based  on  a  priori  speculation 
than  convenient  expressions  of  political  experience.  In  any 
case  the  "theory"  of  the  Roman  Empire  set  out  through  the 
Aeneid  is  merely  a  statement  of  the  actual  situation  under 
Augustus.  How  wide  a  gulf  separates  such  generalising  from 
the  theory  of  the  Secular  and  the  Religious  Power  of  the 
1 2th  and  13th  centuries,  of  the  Functions  of  Government 
of  the  17  th,  or  of  the  Rights  of  Man  of  the  i8th !  Similar 
characteristics  exist  outside  the  region  of  politics,  in  the 
literature,  the  art,  the  building,  in  the  entire  moral  and  intel- 
lectual interpretation  of  the  World  as  presented  by  his 
favourite  Roman  authors  :  all  was  objective,  descriptive  ;  there 
was  nothing  to  call  either  for  the  mystic  or  the  analytic  spirit 
in  their  understanding. 

Antiquity,  then,  as  Erasmus  read  it,  made  this  two-fold 
appeal  to  him  :  the  first,  that  of  a  social-cultural  ideal,  capable 
of  being  harmonised  with  the  Christian  ideal,  and  so  fit  for  the 
modern  age;  the  second,  that  of  an  intellectual  type  deeply 
congruous  with  his  own.  It  is  in  the  operation  of  this  double 
attraction  that  we  find  the  explanation  of  his  zeal  for  the  study 
of  the  ancient  world,  and,  it  may  be  added,  the  key  to  certain 
limitations  and  inconsistencies  which  we  shall  note  in  his 
interpretation  of  it. 

Antiquity  thus  understood  was  in  truth  the  "  New  World  " 
to  the  humanist;  the  "Old  World"  was  that  of  expiring 
Scholasticism,  effete,  puerile,  in  its  second  childhood.  Scholas- 
ticism had  recognised  only  one  aspect  of  human  nature — 
thought ;  and  the  forms  of  thought  had  been  so  reduced  to 
rule,  summary  and  dogmatic  exposition  as  to  lose  all  interest 
for  intelligent  men.  The  other  sides  of  human  life,  literature, 
art  and  passion,  had  been  either  ignored  or  repressed.     They 


Opposition  to  the  Ancient  Culture  39 

had  remained,  perforce,  unreconciled  with  the  dominant  culture, 
and  stood  without  as  lawless  aliens.  Now  in  the  New  Age 
these  were  to  claim  their  rightful  place  by  support  of  the 
great  precedents  of  the  world  of  Greece  and  Rome.  But 
Erasmus,  with  German  and  English  humanists  behind  him,  was 
disposed  to  make  conditions. 


§  2.     The  Reconciliation  of  the  Antique  with  the 
Christian  Spirit. 

The  humanists  of  the  Quattcocento,  in  their  task  of  basing 
upon  the  ancient  literatures  the  edifice  of  a  new  education, 
were  by  no  means  uniformly  concerned  about  the  relation  of 
their  ideal  of  knowledge  to  religion.  On  the  one  hand 
Vergerio,  Vittorino  and  Ficino — to  take  one  type — were  always 
conscious  of  a  problem  to  be  faced  and  a  reconciliation  to  be 
effected' ;  whilst  Filelfo,  Valla  and  Beccadelli  appeared  frankly 
indifferent  to  any  such  issues.  Over  against  both  stood  the 
obscurantists,  who  decried  all  pagan  culture  as  the  enemy  of 
Christianity  and  a  direct  danger  to  morality.  To  this  class 
belonged  Giovanni  Dominici,  the  Friar  of  Santa  Maria 
Novella ;  not  a  few  of  the  preaching  Friars  were  conspicuously 
of  the  same  opinion ;  and  with  them  must  be  reckoned  as 
at  least   in  partial  sj^mpathy  Savonarola^     These   no   doubt 

1  "  Nel  Vergerio  1'  umanista  ed  il  credente  mai  si  contradicono,  ma  vivono 
quasi  a  dire  1'  uno  per  1'  altro,"  Epist.   Verg.  p.  xix. 

On  Vittorino,  see  Woodward,  Vittorino,  pp.  27,  241.  L.  Bruni  rests 
his  defence  of  ancient  learning  upon  the  predominance  of  noble  types  of 
character  in  the  classical  masterpieces:  he  also  urges  that  unedifying 
"fictions  are  not  to  be  taken  literally."     Op.  cit.,  p.  131. 

Ficino  and  the  Platonic  Academy  professed  as  their  central  aim  the 
philosophical  reconciliation  of  Christianity  and  antiquity. 

^  On  Dominici,  who  was  very  bitter,  see  Rosier,  Kurd.  J.  Dominicis 
Erziehiingslehre,  esp.  pp.  28 — 9:  and  Dominici,  Regola  del  Govemo,  p.  134. 
G.  da  Pralo  declaimed  at  Ferrara  (1450)  against  Terence  and  other  poets, 
denouncing  all  who  copied,  translated  or  taught  them.     On  the  other  hand 


40  Antiquity  and  Christianity 

represented  a  large  number  of  earnest-minded  Italians  of 
the  fifteenth  century,  to  whom  the  revival  of  antiquity  was  a 
movement  to  be  cautiously  watched  if  not  wholly  deplored. 

It  was  inevitable  that  the  champions  of  the  New  Learning 
in  northern  countries  should  find  themselves  confronted  by 
similar  scruples  more  widely  held.  In  explanation  it  may  be 
urged  that  in  Italy  patriotic  enthusiasm  claimed  an  unqualified 
allegiance  to  the  revival  of  the  ancient  culture.  Or  it  may  be 
argued  that,  historically,  the  Teutonic  spirit  has  shown  itself 
more  sensitive  than  the  Italian  to  the  supremacy  of  the  moral 
sanction  and  has  been,  therefore,  more  readily  affected  by  a 
discord  between  creed  and  practice.  This  divergence  of  atti- 
tude may  plausibly  be  connected  with  distinction  of  national 
type.  For  we  feel  that  much  that  is  characteristic  of  a  citizen 
of  Florence  or  Venice  of  that  age  is  hardly  conceivable  in 
respect  of  the  burgher-life  of  a  northern  community,  even  of 
Augsburg,  Nuremberg  or  Bruges,  which  in  wealth  or  artistic 
interests  most  resembled  an  Italian  city.  The  "  complete 
man"  of  the  Renaissance,  whether  a  man  of  action  or  an 
artist,  pursuing  his  ends  in  serene  detachment  from  the  moral 
factor,  with  the  single  aim  of  virtu,  personal  distinction, — such 
a  type  of  individuality  was  only  developed  in  its  fulness  south 
of  the  Alps.  When  he  appears  in  the  north,  as  in  Thomas 
Cromwell,  for  example,  he  seems  incongruous,  almost  mon- 
strous. At  the  same  time  we  must  allow  for  the  effects 
produced  by  the  intrusion  of  the  Reform  at  a  period  so  early 
in  the  development  of  the  northern  Revival  of  Letters ;  for 
whether  for  Catholic  or  for  Protestant  the  new  interest  in 
religion  brought  conduct  still  more  definitely  into  conscious- 
ness. Calvin  and  the  Council  of  Trent  had  at  least  this  in 
common  that  both  expressed  reaction  against  a  non-moral 
view   of   life.     Erasmus,    therefore,  as   a  chief  agent   in  the 

Alberto  da  Sarteano,  a  popular  preaching  Friar,  in  the  same  city,  affirmed 
that  the  study  of  the  classics  in  right  hands  redounded  to  true  religion. 
Sabbadini,  Vita  di  Guarino,  pp.  146 — 7. 


The  Arguments  against  the  Revival       41 

transfer  of  the  Renaissance  to  the  German  and  English 
peoples  was  confronted  with  this  problem.  The  inevitable 
conflict  of  ideals  and  their  reconciliation  as  the  Teutonic 
peoples  reached  it  may  be  regarded  indeed  as  typified  in  him. 
An  enquiry  into  his  attitude  towards  this  issue  is  amongst  the 
most  instructive  of  those  which  concern  Erasmus. 

It  is  obvious  that  the  present-day  historian  of  the  Renais- 
sance approaches  the  question  from  a  very  different  point  of 
view  from  that  of  a  scholar  of  the  time,  and  that  as  a  con- 
sequence the  stress  of  the  argument  on  either  side  will  be 
found  to  have  varied.  For  to  us  the  ancient  world  is  primarily 
a  historical  phenomenon,  to  be  weighed  and  criticised  with  the 
detachment  which  suits  a  historical  enquiry.  Four  centuries 
ago,  however,  the  Roman  culture  was  a  practicable  ideal  of  life, 
and  as  such  was  advocated  or  opposed  with  the  zeal  of  partisan- 
ship. A  purely  objective  view  of  antiquity  was  in  those  days 
of  enthusiasm  an  impossibility,  and  a  rational  judgment  of  its 
phenomena  unattainable. 

In  endeavouring  then  to  disentangle  and  to  interpret  the 
attacks  upon  profane  learning  with  which  the  scholars  of  the 
Revival  were  familiar  we  may  classify  them  under  three  groups. 
The  first  includes  the  arguments  drawn  from  the  antagonism 
between  the  spirit  of  the  antique  and  of  the  Christian  world 
in  respect  of  the  ideal  of  human  perfection.  Such  arguments, 
now  disconnected  from  the  comparison  of  the  old  culture  with 
the  new,  have  lost  none  of  their  force  and  touch  the  entire 
question  of  the  relation  of  morals  to  the  art  of  living. 
Another  group  of  objections  rested  upon  the  evil  example  set 
by  scholars,  artists  or  rulers  who  had  yielded  themselves  to  the 
full  impulse  of  the  New  Learning'.  There  are,  thirdly,  argu- 
ments of  the  more  usual  type,  which  were  suggested  by  mere 
superstition  and  ignorance.  We  discern  in  the  writings  of 
Erasmus  his  attitude  to  criticisms  determined  in  these  three 
directions,  which  may  be  considered  in  order. 

^  On  this  see  Burckhardt,  Civilisation  of  the  Rett.,  p.  273. 


42  Antiquity  and  Christianity 


The  contrast  between  ideal  excellence  accepted  in  Italy 
at  the  Renaissance— viz.  virtu,  or  distinction  expressed  in 
individuality,  personal  force  and  self-assertion— and  the  corre- 
sponding Christian  virtue  of  humility,  self-repression,  and 
surrender  to  external  Will,  is  the  most  striking  of  all  the 
oppositions  involved.  It  might  be  worth  enquiring  how  far  the 
Italian  concept  of  virtu  was  in  fact  a  product  of  interest  in, 
and  absorption  of,  the  antique  spirit ;  at  any  rate  it  was 
identified  with  it  by  those  who  combated  the  Revival.  This 
passionate  sense  of  Personality  was  beyond  doubt  a  character- 
istic note  of  the  new  Italy  and  expressed  itself  in  various  ways. 
The  craving  for  Fame,  during  life  or  after  death,  and  the 
interpretation  of  immortality  in  the  Horatian  sense  ("non 
omnis  moriar"),  was  one  of  the  commonest  and  most  signifi- 
cant of  these  manifestations.  Closely  akin  were  a  desire  to 
provoke  envy,  and  the  hatred  of  a  mere  conventional  status, 
much  more  of  any  conditions  likely  to  imply  contempt. 
Parents  have  no  right  to  allow  their  son  to  be  born  in  a  city  of 
mean  repute  or  to  give  him  a  name  of  which  he  might  feel 
ashamed'.  The  pursuit  of  thoroughness  in  political  aims  (as 
with  Machiavelli  or  Cesare  Borgia)  or  in  technical  skill  (as  in 
Cellini),  unhampered  by  moral  law,  was  perhaps  the  aspect  of 
virtii  which  most  disturbed  northern  observers.  Hardly  less 
typical  of  the  same  quality  were  the  egoism  of  the  humanist 
orator,  always  forcing  his  personality  to  the  foreground',  and 
the  overweening  sense  of  importance  of  the  scholar,  even  the 
smartness  of  the  bravo.  It  is  not  that  self-consciousness  was 
peculiar  to  this  particular  age,  but  that  it  was  accepted  as 
natural,  as  praiseworthy,  as  a  notable  element  in  distinction. 
Nearly  allied  to  this  was  the  concept  of  the  present  as  the  sole 
object  of  concern  to  men  of  intelligence.     This  was  in  large 

^  Cp.  Vergerius,  De  Ingen.  Moribtis,  in  Woodward,  op.  cit.  p.  96. 

*  The  art  of  delivery  was  scarcely  second  to  that  of  composition,  so  that 
the  scholar  was  actor  as  well,  whereby  we  can  understand  that  the  flood- 
gates of  egoism  were  thrown  wide. 


The  Arguments  against  the  Revival       43 

measure  a  direct  consequence  of  the  passion  for  the  antique 
world.  By  not  a  few  enthusiasts  the  doctrine  of  a  future  life 
was  vaguely  held  or  wholly  ignored \  The  Papacy,  which  set 
the  temper  of  the  current  religion,  was  from  time  to  time 
frankly  secular  in  motive  and  demoralising  in  effect.  The  cult 
of  grace  of  form  in  art  and  Letters,  in  personality,  in  society, 
was  accompanied  by  the  abeyance  of  idealism  in  thought  and 
belief.  It  was  easy  to  show  that  absorption  in  pagan  culture 
did  as  a  fact  induce  a  habit  of  viewing  and  appraising  thought 
and  action  in  all  departments  as  things  separable  from  spiritual 
truths.  This  secularisation  of  knowledge,  motives  and  life  was 
most  noticeable  in  the  ecclesiastical  sphere,  in  the  latter  half  of 
the  fifteenth  century,  and  that  was  due,  it  was  alleged,  to  the 
influence  of  humanism. 

As  regards  the  argument  from  example,  the  poems  of 
Beccadelli,  the  epigrams  of  Janus  Pannonius*,  the  moral 
obliquity  of  Filelfo  or  Valla  pointed  to  a  danger  lest  a  new 
sanction  to  immorality  might  be  pleaded  from  the  authority  of 
ancient  practice.  The  devout  Churchman  was  aroused  by  the 
difference  of  standard  as  to  personal  purity,  by  the  nature  of 
many  classical  myths,  by  the  very  grace  of  the  language  in 
which  these  were  clothed  by  the  poets.  Even  the  affectation 
of  paganism,  such  as  the  use  of  classical  forms  to  describe  the 
institutions  and  the  mysteries  of  the  Church,  appeared  to 
serious  people  as  a  grave  risk.  The  crimes  and  the  unscru- 
pulous policy  of  rulers  and  statesmen,  avowedly  disciples  of 
classical  learning,  were  taken  as  evidence  of  its  perilous  in- 
fluence upon  character. 

The  objections  of  the  remaining  group  are  less  worthy  of 

^  Erasmus  records  that  he  discussed  the  subject  of  immortality  with  a 
scholar  in  Rome  who  rested  his  denial  of  a  future  life  on  the  authority  of 
the  elder  Pliny:  Nolhac,  J^rasme  eti  Italie,  p.  77.  Cp.  also  Eras.  Op.  iii. 
189  A. 

^  He  was  a  pupil  of  Guarino,  and  became  a  Hungarian  Bishop.  But 
his  poetry  was  in  the  vein  of  Martial. 


44  Antiquity  and  Christianity 

respect.  The  new  light  had  a  disturbing  effect  upon  certain 
accepted  opinions  in  the  ecclesiastical  world.  Valla  had 
exercised  his  scholarship  in  demolishing  the  evidence  for  the 
famous  Donation  of  Constantine  :  he  had  shown  how  to  apply 
critical  methods  formed  from  classical  reading  to  the  study  of 
the  New  Testament.  It  was  reasonably  feared  that  many 
sacred  Arks  would  be  touched  if  principles  of  enquiry  drawn 
from  secular  learning  were  to  be  accepted.  The  Praise  of 
Folly,  the  Colloquies^  and  the  Epistolae  Obsairorum  Virorum 
reveal  the  presence  of  other  perils.  A  knowledge  of  Greek 
invariably  turns  a  man  into  a  heretic '.  To  understand  Hebrew 
means  that  you  are  becoming  a  Jew.  Every  statue  of  Venus  or 
Apollo  is  the  abode  of  a  demon.  Monks  recalled  the  story 
that  when  Boniface  consecrated  the  Pantheon  of  Agrippa  the 
devils  had  been  seen  escaping  through  the  opening  in  the 
dome*^.  To  teach  Christian  youth  the  old  mythology  was  to 
invite  Satan  to  re-occupy  his  ancient  seat. 

How  then  did  Erasmus  regard  the  conflict?  His  stand- 
point was  inevitably  determined,  as  has  been  said  already,  by 
the  complex  conditions — of  mind  and  temperament,  of  training 
and  experience — which  moulded  his  spirit.  To  take  the  out- 
ward or  historical  determinations  first,  we  know  that  the  young 
Erasmus  was  brought  up  under  the  influence  of  the  deep 
affection  of  his  mother  and  that  down  to  his  twenty-sixth  year 
his  surroundings  were  those  of  a  sheltered,  studious  and  not 
too  robust  existence.  All  was  conducive  to  the  outlook  upon 
life  of  a  serious  though  enquiring  Churchman.  The  following 
period  of  about  twenty  years  (1492-1510)  was  for  him  a  time 
of  wavering  aims,  of  which  a  breaking  loose  from  mediaeva- 
lism  in  an  intellectual  sense  and  a  rapidly  growing  interest 
in  Antiquity  were  the   characteristic  marks.     When  the  full 

^  One  of  Guarino's  stories  was  of  a  Friar  who  derived  "Ethnici"  (i.e.  the 
heathen)  from  Aetna,  a  mouth  of  Hell,  from  which  they  sprang. 

^  See  the  story  in  Gregorovius,  History  of  the  city  of  Rome,  ii.  p.  1 10 
(Eng.  transl.).     The  date,  A.D.  604. 


The  Attitude  of  Erasmus  45 

impulse  to  Greek  studies  was  upon  him  there  is  no  doubt  that 
he  passed  through  a  stage  in  which  the  inducement  to  yield 
himself  wholly  to  classical  enthusiasm  was  keenly  felt.  From 
1499  to  1506  he  was  much  absorbed  in  Greek;  but  at  this 
time  the  influence  of  Colet  and  More  proved  of  singular 
moment  in  determining  his  bent.  We  know  from  his  corre- 
spondence how  deeply  he  appreciated  the  sobriety  of  the 
English  type  of  scholarship,  and  that  association  of  learning 
with  Christian  life  and  with  public  duty  which  his  friends  so 
conspicuously  exhibited.  The  reconciliation,  therefore,  of  the 
old  and  the  new  was  accomplished  before  his  eyes,  in  that 
practical  fashion  which  harmonised  with  his  own  temper.  The 
visit  to  Italy  which  followed  (1506)  took  place  when  he  was 
just  forty  years  of  age.  His  tastes  and  habits,  and  his  intel- 
lectual attitude  were  well  nigh  fixed.  The  specific  object  of 
his  journey  had  been  settled  long  before.  It  was  as  a  student 
of  Greek  that  he  set  out ;  and  as  a  most  industrious  student  he 
lived  at  Bologna,  Venice  and  Padua.  Thus  he  saw  in  Italy 
just  what  he  had  prepared  himself  to  see,  and  it  has  been 
shown  above  that  the  limitations  of  his  interests  were  very 
definite.  Politics  scarcely  affected  him,  art  not  at  all.  He 
had  no  taste  for  any  form  of  sumptuous  self-indulgence ;  the 
grosser  side  of  paganism  had  no  attraction  for  him.  The 
scholars  into  whose  society  he  was  chiefly  thrown,  Bom- 
basius,  Aldus,  Musurus,  were  all  men  of  fine  character  and 
strong  mental  balance.  In  Rome,  indeed,  he  was  in  contact 
with  another  type  of  society.  But  Erasmus  quickly  detected 
the  unreality  and  affectations  which  characterised  its  humanism. 
His  solid  sense  was  amused  rather  than  disturbed  by  the 
playing  at  paganism  and  the  condescensions  to  Christianity  of 
eminent  scholars.  It  may  be  affirmed  that  his  experience 
of  Rome  showed  him  that  the  dream  of  a  reproduction  of  the 
ancient  world  was  of  the  nature  of  a  make-believe,  which 
could  work  nothing  for  good,  and  perhaps  very  little  for  evil. 
Erasmus,  however,  was  not  blind  to  the  importance  of  the  fact 


46  Antiquity  and  Christianity 

that  the  sanction  of  the  religious  capital  of  the  world  should 
at  this  period  be  so  freely  accorded  to  ancient  Letters. 

Erasmus  returned  in  1509  to  the  wholesome  atmosphere  of 
his  English  friendships.  He  has  now  reached,  once  for  all,  the 
conviction  that  the  line  of  progress  lay  in  the  direction  of  the 
incorporation  of  antique  wisdom  into  the  frame-work  of  a 
purified  Christian  thought  and  society.  The  culture  of  Greece 
and  Rome  could  play  a  part  for  modern  men  only  by  adapta- 
tion to  the  actual  world.  Moreover,  he  saw  his  own  share  in 
the  work  marked  out  for  him.  It  was,  in  part,  to  aid  education 
in  its  task  of  fitting  man  to  absorb  the  noble  gift  of  the  ancient 
civilisation :  in  part,  to  apply  the  method  of  scholarship  to  the 
historical  origins  of  Christianity. 

The  Reformation  scarcely  affected  the  mental  attitude  of 
Erasmus,  unless  perhaps  to  strengthen  his  consciousness  of 
this  particular  duty  of  enlightenment  by  education  and  learning 
which  he  had  taken  upon  himself.  Nothing  that  he  wTote 
during  the  later  period  of  his  career  marks  any  serious  modifi- 
cation of  the  point  of  view  which  he  had  attained  before  the 
Lutheran  revolt. 

So  much  for  the  outward  determinations.  Passing  next  to 
consider  the  religious  temper  of  Erasmus,  we  are  aware  that  he 
was  constantly  accused  by  his  enemies  of  a  lack  of  one  of  the 
deeper  instincts  of  the  Christian  consciousness,  the  sense  of 
the  depravity  of  human  nature.  It  has  been  already  admitted 
that  his  spiritual  analysis  was  never  very  profound.  He  held  a 
view  of  humanity  which  was  certainly  optimistic  in  respect  of 
the  individual  and  of  the  race.  The  working  of  the  Logos 
"outside  the  Covenant"  was  with  him  a  matter  of  sincere 
conviction.  He  found  evidence  of  it  in  the  lofty  thought  and 
moral  ideals  of  Socrates,  Cicero  and  Vergil.  Defective  train- 
ing, evil  circumstances,  made  men  bad  :  by  nature  they  were 
created  for  good.  Such  a  view  of  the  human  spirit  led  easily 
to  an  attitude  towards  the  great  past  which  was  in  itself  a 
reconciliation.      It   was   natural   to   seek   a   parallel   between 


The  Attitude  of  Erasmus  47 

Christian  aspiration  and  conduct  and  those  of  the  nobler 
•  figures  of  paganism.  The  parallel,  indeed,  became  an  identity. 
As  to  the  corruptions  of  antiquity  they  were,  like  the  evils  of 
the  Christian  world,  but  deflections.  Each  must  be  judged  by 
its  best  examplars  and  its  highest  moments. 

Given  this  point  of  view  it  is  easy  to  see  that  the  conflict 
between  ancient  and  modern  ideals  did  not  exist  for  Erasmus 
in  an  acute  form.  He  had  little  fear  of  pagan  license,  less  of 
pagan  superstition,  for  his  own  reasonableness  made  such 
dangers  inconceivable. 

However,  Erasmus  was  always  ready  to  weigh  the  doubts 
of  people  of  whose  intelligence  and  earnestness  he  was 
assured.  His  method  of  meeting  them  in  the  present  case 
was  characteristic.  It  is,  he  holds,  partly  a  question  of  degree, 
partly  of  ends.  There  may  be  too  much  weight  attached  to 
speculation,  or  to  rhetoric,  too  much  interest  in  mythology,  or 
too  much  craving  for  reputation  for  learning'.  Character  and 
usefulness  in  life  are  primary  ends :  scholarship  is  but  a  means, 
a  precious  means  indeed,  to  such  ends.  A  sense  of  the  right 
application  of  knowledge  to  life  is  a  crucial  test  of  a  true 
teacher.  Hence  selection  of  authors  is  a  special  function  of 
every  master.  For  example,  only  the  most  serious  obligation 
will  justify  anyone  in  treating  Martial.  Such  admissions 
Erasmus  makes  readily  enough.  But  in  truth  he  feels  that  the 
problem  must  be  settled  by  the  broad  aims  with  which  the 
ancient  learning  is  advocated.  Allow  that  its  main  tendency  is 
for  good — for  religion,  for  wisdom,  for  efficiency  in  life — the 
question  of  details  will  solve  itselfl 

Hence  we   do  not  find  one  uniform    line  of  defence  in 

1  Eras.  Op.  iii.  925  D  and  688  F. 

*  For  example,  in  spite  of  the  undeniable  importance  of  the  religious 
end  in  education,  he  will  not  yield  so  far  as  to  substitute  Christian  late  Latin 
poets  for  Vergil  or  Lucan.  Op.  ix.  93  E.  The  Psalms  are  holier  than  the 
Odes  of  Horace,  but  if  your  object  is  to  learn  good  Latin  you  must  choose 
Horace.     Op.  i.  922  B. 


48  Antiquity  and  Christianity 

Erasmus'  writings.  In  the  De  Ratione  (15 11)  he  is  hardly 
conscious  that  a  difficulty  exists.  The  Ciceronianus  (1528)  is, 
on  the  other  hand,  a  warning  against  the  pagan  temper.  But 
there  was  no  yielding  of  his  position,  even  when  Melanchthon 
and  most  humanist  Reformers  seemed  to  abate  their  ideal  of 
scholarly  education  under  stress  of  religion.  The  De  Pueris 
(1529)  and  the  preface  to  the  Tusculans  (1532)  are  pitched  in 
the  key  of  earnest  conviction  that  the  light  of  which  the  times 
stand  in  so  sore  need  is  to  be  found  not  in  Scripture  alone  but 
in  the  organised  experience  and  wisdom  of  antiquity. 

It  may  with  some  fairness  be  alleged  of  Erasmus  that  he  is 
too  anxious  to  disown  as  his  aim  the  true  self-abandonment  of 
the  scholar  in  his  subject.  It  was  the  corollary  of  his  "practical" 
temper;  his  want  of  sympathy  with  speculative  thought' — 
ancient  and  mediaeval  alike — is  only  an  illustration  of  it.  Yet 
we  may  say  that  his  actual  practice  was  better  than  his 
principle.  In  the  region  of  language  and  in  the  editing  of 
texts  he  provided  material,  genuine  products  of  research,  for 
others  to  use. 

Erasmus,  however,  was  not  content  with  resisting  attacks 
upon  Antiquity  in  the  supposed  interests  of  religion.  He  has 
several  positive  arguments  to  bring  forward  from  the  history  of 
Christianity.  The  first  is  that  the  universal  Graeco-Roman 
culture  rendered  possible  the  spread  of  Christianity.  The 
next,  that  its  foundations  lie  in  the  ancient  society  and  cannot 
be  considered  apart  from  it.  The  use  of  classical  learning  for 
the  explanation  of  the  truths  of  religion  is  manifold  and  indis- 
pensable. Hence  a  real  knowledge  of  divinity  is  impossible 
without  Greek :  the  New  Testament  is  perverted  in  the  hands 
of  one  ignorant  of  the  liberal  disciplines.  In  the  third  place, 
Erasmus,  like  all  humanists,  dwells  upon  the  approbation  of 

1  "  I  am  not  unjust  to  philosophy,  but  she  is  only  an  adjunct  to 
knowledge."  Op.  ix.  103  D.  Detailed  study  of  philosophy  leads  to  arro- 
gance, and  is  bad  for  healthy  common  sense.  He  had  never  forgotten  the 
scholastic  theology  of  his  Paris  days. 


Reconciliation  by  Allegory  49 

ancient  literature  recorded  by  Basil,  Jerome  and  Augustine  \ 
This  proves  that  no  inconsistency  exists  between  the  two  great 
fields  of  knowledge.  How  much  did  not  Basil  or  Chrysostom 
owe  to  Plutarch^?  Finally,  the  study  of  grammar,  logic,  of 
the  orators,  poets,  and  moralists  was,  as  a  mere  fact  of  history, 
of  first-rate  importance  to  the  early  ages  of  the  Church :  and 
the  Church  had  not  refused  to  use  them — so  far  as  it  could 
understand  them — ever  since. 

One  further  argument  he  derives  from  the  study  of  his- 
torical Christianity :  that  pagan  stories  may  be  utilised  for 
religious  and  moral  edification  by  the  method  of  Allegory. 
This  reliance  upon  an  arbitrary  and  uncritical  treatment  of 
literature  strikes  us  as  inconsistent  with  Erasmus'  main  canon 
of  interpretation.  But  he  has  drawn  it  from  the  Greek 
Fathers,  notably  Origen ;  and  we  have  here  another  instance 
of  the  want  of  precision  in  Erasmus'  logical  thinking.  For 
purpose  of  edification  he  surrenders,  unconsciously  perhaps, 
one  of  his  most  characteristic  principles  of  criticism.  He 
affirms  that  all  phenomena  in  Nature  may  be  regarded  as 
reflections  of  moral  states.  Hence  the  place  of  allegory  in 
exposition.  Scripture  does  not  satisfy  us  if  we  limit  ourselves 
to  literal  interpretation :  for  example,  the  stories  of  Esau  and 
his  birthright,  of  Goliath,  of  Samson.  Much  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, indeed,  may  be  perilous  to  morals,  if  taken  literally.  He 
then  proceeds  to  affirm  that  poetry,  especially  Homer  and 
Vergil,  and  the  entire  Platonic  philosophy,  are  "allegorical," 
and  offensive  myths  may  in  this  way  be  rendered  harmless 
or  actually  helpful.  Unfortunately  Erasmus  did  not  confine 
himself  to  considering  the  particular  "  allegorical "  interpre- 
tations which  may  have  been  intended  by  Plato  or  Vergil ;  he 
opened  the  door   to   floods   of  arbitrary  glosses   and   moral 

1  Basil's  Letter  was  translated  by  Lionardo  Bruni  under  the  title  De 
legendis  Gentilium  libris,  one  of  the  most  popular  tracts  of  early  humanism. 
On  Augustine,  Eras.  Op.  x.  1731. 

'  Eras.  Op.  v.  856  E;  iii.  251  E. 

W.  4 


50  Antiquity  and  Christianity 

lessons  such  as  the  mediaevalists  had  applied  to  all  depart- 
ments of  thought.     On  the  other  hand  this  should  be  said. 
The  allegorical  method  is  the  intermediate  stage   between  a 
conscious  antinomy  and  its  historical  solution.     Now  the  day 
for  the  perception  of  evolution  in  knowledge,  beHefs,  or  morals 
was  not  yet :  though  we  can  trace  certain  partial  recognitions 
of  it  in  Erasmus.     A  harmony  between  apparent  contraries — 
for  example,  the  God  of  the  Gospels  and  the  Jehovah  of  the 
Book  of  Judges — must  be  reached,  for  both  concepts  were 
integral  parts  of  the  same  belief.     The  historical  attitude  being 
impossible,  the  Allegory  was  the  only  instrument  of  reconcili- 
ation.    But  such  allegories  rested  upon  no  critical  basis,  they 
were  at  the  disposal  of  any  ingenious  mind,  and  could  take  any 
form  which  the  exigencies  of  the  argument  required.     Hence 
to  the  neutral  enquirer,  with  no  specific  cause  to  advance,  such 
a  method  served  to  bring  to  light,  rather  than  to  solve,  the 
problem  to  which  it  was  applied.     In  a  review  of  Erasmus' 
attitude  to  antiquity  this  illustration  of  it  is  of  interest.     For  it 
reveals,   once  more,   his  essential   position — that  the  ancient 
culture  must  be  reconciled  with  the  Christian  ideal  before  it 
can  be  assimilated  by  the  modern  man.     To  sum  up,  Erasmus 
did  not  believe  that  the  risk  of  paganising  western  Europe 
through  the  classics  was  serious  enough  to  be  accounted  an 
argument  against  their   study  ^      He  was  conscious,   on  the 
other  hand,  that  the  "  Ages  of  Faith,"  or  as  he  regarded  them 
the    "Ages   of   barbarism,"   were   by   no    means    guiltless   of 
moral  degradation,  of  which  unenlightened  Christian  Germany 


^  For  the  same  common-sense  point  of  view  in  Euglish  educators  of  the 
Tudor  time  see  W.  Raleigh,  Introduction  to  the  Book  of  the  Courtier, 
p.  xlvi. 

As  to  danger  to  faith,  positive  anti-Christian  feeling  was  very  rare 
amongst  Italian  or  other  humanists:  though  it  came,  of  course,  easily 
enough  to  a  controversialist  to  confuse  indifference  to,  or  criticism  of, 
received  opinions  with  absolute  disbelief.  In  this  way  Valla  and  Erasmus 
were  both  "unbelievers." 


The  Doctrine  of  Imitation  5 1 

afforded  a  contemporary  example.  To  Erasmus  or  Melanchthon ' 
there  could  be  no  alliance  between  religion  and  ignorance,  no 
antagonism  between  Christianity  and  intelligence.  A  new 
body  of  organised  wisdom  had  been  revealed  to  the  world :  it 
stood  in  true  affinity  to  sound  religion.  But  only  on  certain 
conditions.  First,  the  pre-eminence  of  the  Christian — not  the 
ascetic,  but  the  self-respecting — type  of  personality  must  be 
assumed :  next,  the  end  of  all  wisdom  is  the  service  of  God 
and  the  community,  not  the  self-culture  of  the  individual : 
thirdly,  such  practical  ends  are  inconsistent  with  an  ideal  of 
mere  imitation  or  reproduction  of  the  letter  of  the  past. 


§  3.     Erasmus  and  the  Ciceronians. 

A  chapter  of  much  interest  in  the  history  of  Latin  scholar- 
ship is  occupied  by  the  development  of  the  doctrine  of 
Imitation.  It  may  be  accepted  as  generally  true  that  the 
earlier  humanists,  Bruni,  Poggio  and  Vittorino,  aimed  at  a 
sound  working  Latin  style,  suited  to  the  needs  of  the  age,  fit 
to  be  the  medium  of  expression  in  affairs  as  well  as  in  learning. 
The  standard  to  be  obeyed  was  indeed  that  of  the  best  Roman 
period,  but,  so  far  as  general  classical  usage  in  accidence  and 
syntax  allowed,  the  principle  of  elasticity  and  adaptability  was 
observed.  No  one  model  was  regarded  as  exclusively  authori- 
tative :  nor  was  rigid  adhesion  to  precedent  for  inflexional 
form  or  vocabulary  imposed  ^ 

1  Melanchthon  in  his  inaugural  address  at  Wittenberg  in  151 8  proclaims 
the  impossibility  of  knowledge  or  moral  advance  without  a  fervent  revival 
of  Greek  studies  in  Germany.  Religion,  above  all,  stood  in  need  of  their 
aid.     De  Corrigetidis  Siudiis,  15 18. 

^  "Scuole  umanistiche  1'  Italia  ne  ebbe  due:  una  grande  e  una  piccola, 
quella  degli  eroi  del  quattrocentro  e  quella  degli  epigoni  del  cinquecento. 
I  latinisti  del  quattrocento  riproducevano  tutte  le  forme  letterarie  della 
cultura  romana  per  il  bisogno  di  riprodurre,  ma  vi  imprimevano  la  propria 

4—2 


52  Erasmus  and  the  Ciceronians 

With  the  elaboration  of  grammar  and  the  closer  study  of 
style  which  date  from  Valla,  the  claims  of  special  authors  to 
pre-eminence  were  accepted.  Before  the  end  of  the  fifteenth- 
century  tlie  theory  of  Imitation  in  Latinity  was  keenly  discussed 
between  scholars  of  weight,  like  Cortesius  and  Poliziano. 
Pico  and  Bembo  carry  on  the  controversy  in  1 5 1 2 ;  Erasmus 
and  Longolius  discuss  the  subject  eight  years  later;  by  1526 
the  question  has  become  a  bitter  dispute,  and  France  and 
Italy  are  involved  against  German  scholars.  This  issued 
(1528)  in  the  Dialogus  Ciceronianus  of  Erasmus.  A  year  or 
two  later  Scaliger  and  Dolet  joined  the  fray.  Though  Erasmus 
preserved  a  dignified  silence  under  a  storm  of  personal  abuse, 
his  friends  took  up  his  cause ;  and  the  argument  was  dying  out 
when  the  great  Muretus  (1556)  closed  it  once  for  all  in  the 
Erasmian  sense. 

The  controversy  is  pertinent  to  a  study  of  Erasmus  but  not 
on  the  issue  of  the  special  merit  of  Cicero's  Latinity  as  against 
that  of  Livy  or  Tacitus.  It  concerns  the  present  enquiry  by 
reason  of  the  light  which  is  thrown  thereby  upon  the  attitude 
to  the  Revival  of  Letters  which  characterises  Erasmus. 

The  arguments  turn  upon  four  points :  first,  the  function  of 
Latin,  as  understood  in  the  age  of  the  Revival ;  second,  the 
determination  of  "  perfection "  in  Latin  literature ;  third,  the 
relation  of  "  imitation "  to  style ;  fourth,  the  broader  impli- 
cations which  in  Erasmus'  belief  were  bound  up  with 
Ciceronianism. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  founders  of  humanism  had  a 
clear  concept  of  Latin  as  a  living  language.  And  it  is  of  the 
essence  of  a  living  tongue  that  it  has  freedom  to  adapt  itself, 

personalita  potente  e  viva,  riuscendo  nell'  imitazione  originali,  doveche  i 
cinquecentisti  non  facevano  che  bamboleggiare  ciceroneggiando."  Sabbadini, 
Prolusione,  p.  18.  It  may  be  stated  perhaps  as  a  principle  that,  in  the 
first  stage  of  every  Revival,  spirit  rather  than  letter  is  seized  and  reproduced. 
The  tendency  to  scholarly,  and  ultimately  pedantic,  imitation  follows  when 
the  original  impulse  has  died  down.     Cp.  infra,  p.  60,  note. 


Artificiality  in  Language  53 

to  expand,  to  absorb  and  assimilate.  A  vigorous  language  will 
none  the  less  preserve  its  special  genius,  its  inflexional  system, 
its  syntax.  On  the  other  hand  to  restrain  a  language  from 
enlarging  vocabulary,  from  enriching  its  figures,  metaphors, 
similes,  by  modern  instances,  from  utilising  its  fullest  in- 
flexional forms,  in  deference  to  the  limitations  of  a  past  age, 
means  only  one  thing — that  the  language  is  dying,  or  is  dead. 
Now,  the  Ciceronian  in  disallowing  a  word,  a  compound,  or  an 
inflexion,  absent,  by  accident  or  design,  in  the  surviving  works 
of  Cicero  proclaimed  Latin  to  be  just  a  toy  or  a  specimen:  the 
appanage  of  the  dilettante,  not  the  instrument  of  a  living 
civilisation.  Erasmus  saw  this  clearly.  "  Times  are  changed  : 
our  instincts,  needs,  ideas,  are  not  those  of  Cicero.  Let  us 
indeed  take  example  from  him.  He  was  a  borrower,  an 
imitator,  if  you  will ;  but  he  copied  in  order  to  assimilate,  to 
bring  what  he  found  into  the  service  of  his  own  age.  Through- 
out Cicero's  letters, — what  verve,  what  actuality,  what  life  ! 
How  remote  they  are  from  the  compositions  of  the  pedant 
working  in  his  study."  He  criticises  certain  orations  of  the 
Ciceronian  Longolius.  He  finds  them  stuffed  with  artificiality: 
their  author  is  as  "  a  man  walking  in  the  land  of  make-believe  : 
where  by  waving  the  Ciceronian's  wand  he  calls  up  before  an 
admiring  world  Senates  and  Consuls,  '  colonies '  and  '  allies,' 
Quirites  and  Caesars,  and  persuades  us  that  they  are  the 
actualities  of  to-day,  alive  and  real,  substances  and  not 
shadows."  Why  pretend  that  the  antique  virtue  is  restored 
by  the  trick  of  dubbing  modern  degeneracy  by  ancient  names? 
Let  us  face  realities  as  we  know  them  and  fit  our  Latin  to 
these  as  the  expression  of  a  modern  world  of  politics,  thought 
and  feeling.  The  Ciceronians  deliberately  ignored  this  prime 
condition  of  the  function  of  Latinity,  in  their  pursuit  of  a 
liberal,  and  formal  reproduction  of  their  modeP. 

1  Dolet,  indeed,  maintained  that  Cicero  gave  all  that  was  necessary 
to  the  full  demands  of  the  present:  "human  character  and  social  life  are 
not   variable  quantities."     But  the  limits  imposed  are  such  as  to   cramp 


54  Erasmus  and  the  Ciceromans 

Secondly,  the  purists,  as  Burckhardt'  rightly  says,  regarded 
the  Ciceronian  style  as  Latein  an  sick — the  Absolute  in 
Roman  speech.  Bembo  describes  Cicero  as  "  unus  scribendi 
magister " :  Dolet  affirms  that  he  is  "  purissimus  linguae 
Latinae  fons,  flumen,  oceanus,"  and  adds  that  vocabulary, 
sentence  forms,  harmony  of  construction,  all  reach  their 
highest  conceivable  pitch  of  refinement  in  him.  If  other 
writers  may  be  read  it  can  only  be  as  examples  of  what  must  be 
avoided,  as  a  sure  means  of  bringing  back  the  errant  reader  to 
the  one  attractive  path  *.  Scaliger  placed  Cicero  on  the  supreme 
pinnacle  :  his  was  the  glory  of  literal  inspiration,  criticism  of 
which  was  a  form  of  profanity. 

Now  Erasmus  was  saved  from  such  exaggerations  partly  by 
that  instinct  of  proportion  which  was  in  the  main  his  constant 
quality,  partly  by  the  width  of  his  outlook  upon  classical 
antiquity.  He  points  out  that  Cicero  does  not  cover  the  whole 
ground .  even  of  Roman  culture.  Further  he  recognises  in 
Cicero  certain  marked  defects  in  style ;  so  that  Quintilian  even 
had  already  found  it  necessary  to  deprecate  an  ignorant  worship 
of  his  oratorical  method.  He  goes  further  and  bids  the 
scholar  follow  Cicero  in  spirit,  which  will  compel  him  to  study 
the  genius  and  not  the  letter  of  the  language.  In  the  Dialogue 
Erasmus  wields  the  keenest  weapons  of  his  satire.  "  Woe,"  he 
says,  "  to  the  scholar  who  closes  a  Letter  with  a  date  of  the 

individuality  of  expression.  *'  Qui  in  Cicerone  versatur,  eadem  semper  verba 
usurpet  necesse  est,  sed  ad  rem  susceptam  ita  diverse  accommodata  ut 
simul  latine,  pure,  eleganter,  proprie,  apte,  ornate,  copiose,  denique 
tuliiane  loquatur  et  varie,  ut  nihil  repetitum  aut  plus  semel  dictum  indices." 
It  is  evident  from  this  that  Dolet  in  reality  would  force  matter  to  comply 
with  the  requirements  of  Ciceronian  style.  There  was  to  be  no  going  out- 
side of  Cicero's  precedents,  until  you  were  absolutely  certain  that  these 
could  not  be  twisted  to  the  desired  use.  "  Good  Latin  "  thus  became  a  mere 
matter  of  ingenuity. 

^  Cardinal  Adriano,  of  Corneto,  is  the  scholar  to  whom  Burckhardt 
specially  refers,  Civil,  of  Ren.,  p.  254  n. 

'  Bembo,  J?/.  Fam.  v.  17:  Dolet,  De  Cice7-oniana  itnitatione,  p.  62. 


The  Attitude  of  Poliziano  55 

year  as  well  as  of  the  month  :  Cicero  gives  the  month  only ; 
or  who  opens  it  with  6".  /.  d. :  Cicero's  practice  is  to  omit  the 
adjective.  Ferdinando  Res;e  has  precedent :  there  is  none  in 
Cicero  for  Rege  Ferdinando."  We  can  imagine  the  scorn  which 
the  broadly  human  scholar,  the  large-souled  man  of  the  world, 
poured  out  upon  pre-occupation  with  such  verbal  criticism. 
Where  was  the  hope  of  an  universal  culture,  to  be  built  upon 
all  that  was  greatest  in  antiquity,  if  the  men  of  the  past  were  to 
be  regarded  as  so  many  corpses  for  dissection?  The  Ciceronian 
superstition,  therefore,  meant  the  death  of  scholarship ;  and 
Erasmus  said  so.  For  this  he  was  denounced'  as  "the  enemy 
of  Cicero,"  "  the  destroyer  of  the  Latin  tongue,"  "  monstrum," 
"  carnifex." 

Next,  as  the  Ciceronian  canon  was  slowly  formulated,  it 
was  inevitable  that,  in  an  age  when  Oratory  and  Letter- 
writing  held  so  large  a  place,  scholars  should  debate  the 
question  of  the  limits  of  Imitation  in  composition.  The  true 
proportions  of  the  problem  first  appear  in  the  discussion 
between  Poliziano  and  Cortesius.  In  writing  to  the  latter 
Poliziano^  states  his  own  doctrine  of  style.  "The  truly  learned 
writer  is  one  whose  style  emerges  from  a  continued  process  of 
erudite  study,  of  comparison  of  styles,  and  of  actual  effort  at 
composition."  Fine  expression,  he  means,  is  a  sort  of  emana- 
tion from  the  equipped  and  practised  writer,  something  intimate, 
personal  and  therefore  inalienable.  "On  the  other  hand  he 
whose  method  is  that  of  direct  imitation  is  hardly  different 
from  a  parrot,  which  repeats  what  are  to  it  but  meaningless 
sounds.  Hence,"  he  goes  on,  "  writing  of  this  kind  is  without 
reality;  it  lacks  the  stamp  of  individuality,  it  leaves  no  impress; 
it  has  no  nerve,  no  life;  it  arouses  no  emotion  in  others,  no 
energy.     Tear  yourself  away  from  that  miserable  superstition 

^  We  must  note  that  Bembo  and  Sadoleto  recognising  the  distinction  of 
Erasmus  took  no  part  in  this  abuse.  Scaliger  and  Dolet  were  the  real 
offenders. 

"^  The  letter  of  Poliziano  in  Politiani  opera,  Ed.  Aldina,  sig.  I.  III., 
Lib.  viii. 


56  Erasmus  and  the  Ciceronians 

which  forces  you  to  decry  your  own  writing  because  it  is  not  a 
copy  of  some  one  else's,  and  which  bids  you  never  withdraw 
your  eyes  from  Cicero.  Non  exprimis,  inquit  aliquis,  Cicero- 
nem.  Quid  tum  ?  Non  enim  sum  Cicero :  me  tamen,  ut 
opinor,  exprimo." 

The  same  argument  was  adopted  by  Pico'  in  his  corre- 
spondence with  Pietro  Bembo.  Accepting  to  the  full  the 
Renaissance  doctrine  of  virtil^  he  maintains  that  every  man 
must  be  something  personal  and  individual,  and  that  imitation 
of  another  is  a  mere  substitute  for  personality.  No  one,  there- 
fore, can  properly  limit  himself  to  one  model  of  expression. 
Like  a  painter  he  will  appropriate  and  combine  what  is  best 
for  his  purpose  from  all  schools.  The  variety  of  modern  life 
makes  it  impossible  for  one  writer  to  give  us  vocabulary  or 
style  equal  to  so  far-reaching  a  demand.  Admitting  that  a 
modern  can  "  imitate  "  Cicero  :  what  does  this  mean  ?  He 
may  adopt  his  vocabulary;  but  Cicero's  handling  of  his 
vocabulary  is  not  within  any  one  else's  power.  An  illustration : 
' "  You  try  to  re-build  as  it  stood  a  wall  which  has  been  thrown 
down.  The  material,  we  allow,  is  the  same,  but  almost  of  a 
certainty  the  ordering  of  the  bricks,  and  beyond  all  question, 
the  cementing,  will  be  new,  and  will  be  yours."  You  must 
admit  therefore  an  original,  self-directed  element  in  every 
imitative  style.  An  actual  reproduction  of  Cicero  could  be 
nothing  but  a  tour  de  force,  ingenious  but  worthless.  A 
"  Ciceronian  "  Brief  issued  from  the  Chancery  is  an  impossi- 
bility :  for  a  cento  of  phrasings  and  passages  would  not  rightly 
be  called  after  Cicero's  name. 

Bembo"^  replies  that  an  original  style  cannot  now  be  pro- 
duced. All  conceivable  styles  have  been  exhausted  by  the 
ancients.  An  eclectic  style  would  have  no  unity.  He  affirms 
as  the  final  law  of  the   writer :    seek  out    the  one   supreme 

^  J.  F.  Picus  ad  P.  Bembum,  de  imitatione,  1530.     It  was  written  1512. 
*  P.   Bembus  ad  J.  F.  Picum,  de  imitatione,  in  same  volume  as  the 
Letter  of  Pico :  cciiii. 


Erasmus  and  the  Canon  of  Style  57 

stylist  and  imitate  him,  and  him  alone :  so  imitate  him  that 
you  may  attain  his  excellence  :  so  attain  that  you  may  even 
surpass.  This  unique  master  is,  of  course,  Cicero,  whom  the 
aspirant  must  so  study  that  the  whole  being  becomes  saturated 
with  him. 

Erasmus  held  with  Poliziano,  for  whom  he  had  a  profound 
respect,  and  with  Pico.  In  1520  he  writes  to  Longolius,  the 
purist,  warning  him  against  too  scrupulous  a  choice  of  words 
on  the  ground  that  this  was  incompatible  with  that  higher 
scholarship  whose  main  interest  must  lie  in  the  thing  expressed. 
A  self-conscious  style  was  to  Erasmus  as  to  Vittorino  the  mark 
of  a  second-rate  thinker.  The  true  disciple  of  Cicero  is  above 
all  things  careful  of  the  requirements  of  his  subject-matter. 
*'  No  form  of  expression  can  be  pronounced  elegant  which  is 
not  both  congruous  to  the  artist  and  rightly  fitted  to  the 
subject."  "  I  will  deny  that  name  of  true  disciple  to  every 
one  who  does  not  thoroughly  understand  that  of  which  he 
writes,  who  is  not  sincerely  moved  by  what  he  understands,  who 
does  not  with  exactitude  convey  what  he  has  thus  felt  and 
understood'."  Such  is  Erasmus'  claim  for  individuality  in  ex- 
pression and  for  the  right  subordination  of  style  to  thought. 

In  respect  of  his  own  Latinity,  Erasmus  whilst  scrupulous 
in  respect  of  grammatical  canons  was  by  no  means  bound  by 
Augustan  precedents.  His  style  is  always  in  thorough  accord 
with  the  genius  of  Roman  speech.  In  its  amplitude,  elasticity, 
copiousness  of  vocabulary  and  of  figure,  in  its  antithetical 
skill,  its  entire  freedom  from  mediaevalisms,  and  from  Teutonic 
modes  of  expression,  it  is  worthy  of  high  respect  as  an  original 
styled  It  was  this  conscious  freedom  of  movement  within  the 
limits  of  the  Latin  tongue  that  made  Erasmus  peculiarly  con- 
temptuous of  the  smaller  men  who,  to  his  seeming,  were  bent 
on  exhibiting  Latin  as  henceforth  a  dead  language. 

'  Eras.  Op.  i.  1026  A,  B. 

^  Cp.  Sabbadini,    Ciceromanismo,  p.  59:  and  M.  Pattison  in  Encycl. 
Brit.  Art.  "Erasmus"  on  the  Latinity  of  Erasmus. 


58  Erasmus  and  the  Ciceronians 


The  Dialogus  Ciceronianus  (1527-8)  is  one  of  the  best 
examples  of  the  Erasmian  method  of  illumination  by  the  way 
of  satire.  It  falls  into  two  main  divisions ;  a  criticism  partly 
satirical,  partly  serious,  of  the  Ciceronian  position,  and  a 
solemn  gravamen  against  the  quasi-paganism  fostered  under 
the  cloak  of  stylistic  purism.  Nosoponus,  the  Ciceronian 
interlocutor,  lies  under  a  sad  affliction.  Once  he  was  cheerful, 
handsome,  well  set-up.  But  for  fourteen  years  he  has  been  the 
prey  of  an  obsession — a  craving  to  be  a  new  Cicero.  For 
seven  years  he  never  read  a  line  written  by  anyone  but  his 
great  exemplar :  he  saturated  his  mind  and  his  taste  with 
Cicero :  he  never  permitted  himself  to  look  upon  the  portrait 
even  of  anyone  else.  In  his  dreams  also  Cicero  was  always 
turning  up.  During  this  period  he  succeeded  in  compiling 
three  weighty  dictionaries  :  the  first  contained  every  word 
used  by  Cicero,  its  derivation,  and  a  note  of  every  inflexion 
sanctioned  by  his  usage.  The  next  included  all  phrases, 
figures,  metaphors  and  similes  occurring  in  Cicero  ;  the  third 
and  the  biggest  was  a  compilation  of  the  rhythmic  tags  and 
metric  feet  which  the  scholar  had  noticed  in  the  Orations  and 
elsewhere.  Seven  subsequent  years  were  then  spent  in  "imi- 
tation," relying  on  the  dictionaries.  Cicero,  so  these  prove, 
used  amabam,  but  not  amabatis ;  amor  but  not  amores ; 
ornatus  but  not  ornatior.  In  no  emergency  would  Nosoponus 
employ  these  unauthorised  inflections.  By  dint  of  most  rigid 
seclusion  from  all  distractions,  e.g.  by  living  always  in  a  room 
without  windows  on  to  the  street,  by  never  marrj'ing,  by 
refusing  all  duties  public  or  private,  he  had  created  for  himself 
a  purely  Ciceronian  atmosphere.  Working  very  late  he  con- 
trived in  this  manner  to  produce  one  fair-sized  sentence  a 
night.  This  is  afterwards  reviewed,  filed  down,  or  enriched, 
perhaps  re-cast.  Six  such  sentences  make  a  letter  worthy  of 
Cicero.  Nosoponus  eschews  conversation,  for  the  risk  of 
drifting  out  of  the  right  atmosphere  is  too  serious.     People 


Aff'ectations  of  Paganism  59 

said  that  this  was  hardly  caricature  after  all :  there  were  plenty 
of  scholars  in  Rome  of  whom  it  was  a  fair  portrait'. 

This  brings  us  to  the  fourth  aspect  of  the  Ciceronian 
controversy  as  it  concerns  Erasmus.  For  such  men  were  the 
enemies  of  sound  learning  in  a  wider  sense.  Their  affectation 
of  purism  was,  in  not  a  few  of  them,  bound  up  with  a  trick  of 
playing  at  paganism.  "  Paganitatem  profiteri  non  audemus, 
Ciceroniani  cognomen  obtendimus''."  The  Ciceronian  was, 
by  virtue  of  his  profession,  obliged  to  eschew  Christian  nomen- 
clature, and  thus  expended  much  ingenuity  in  expressing 
sacred  things  in  classical  diction.  Jupiter  Opt.  Max.  was  his 
equivalent  for  Deus  Pater,  Apollo  or  Aesculapius  for  Christus, 
Diana  for  Maria  ;  diris  devovere  for  excommunicare.  Tinctura 
stood  for  baptism  ;  victima  for  the  Mass^  Erasmus  recalls  an 
incident  of  his  stay  in  Rome  (1509).  He  was  present  at  a 
Good  Friday  sermon  preached  before  Pope  Julius  II.  In 
purest  Ciceronian  prose  the  orator  quoted  deeds  of  self- 
sacrifice  and  patriotism  from  Greek  and  Roman  myth  and 
history :  Decius,  Curtius,  Iphigenia,  Socrates  were  dwelt  upon, 
but  the  Crucifixion  was  all  but  forgotten.  "As  for  religion," 
says  Erasmus,  "there  was  not  a  touch  of  it  from  beginning  to 
end — of  sham  Cicero  more  than  enough'*."  To  Erasmus  the 
sincere  study  of  Letters  had  for  its  end  the  deepening  of  man's 
hold  upon  realities.  Antique  culture,  whether  viewed  as  know- 
ledge or  as  literature,  found  its  value  to  the  New  Age  in  the  aid 
it  rendered  to  life,  service  and  religion.  This  is  what  he  means 
when  he  declares:  "hue  discuntur  disciplinae,  hue  philosophia, 
hue  eloquentia,  ut  Christum  intelligamus,  ut  Christi  gloriam 
celebremus.     Hie  est  totius  eruditionis  et  eloquentiae  scopus^" 

^  Sabbadini,  op.  cit.  p.  63. 
■■^  Eras.  Op.  i.  999  K. 

*  Pontanus,  the  Neapolitan  scholar,  uses  genii  for  angels :  umbrae  for 
the  future  life;  virgo  capitolina  for  Madonna,  and  that  before  Leo  X. 

*  Nolhac,  l^rasme,  p.  77- 
'  Eras.  Op.  i.  1026  B. 


6o     Erasmus  and  the   Vernacular  Tongues 

Thus  does  Erasmus  in  the  field  of  pure  style  once  more 
affirm  his  attitude  to  that  problem  of  the  Renaissance  which 
concerns  the  relation  of  antiquity  to  the  modern  world.  His 
was  what  Walter  Pater'  has  called  "the  old  true  way  of 
Renaissance"  whereby  ancient  material  is  acted  upon  by  a 
new  principle,  a  modern  need.  So  far,  indeed,  as  language 
was  concerned,  this  principle  was  in  the  event  applied  with 
more  completeness  than  Erasmus  imagined.  Not  in  Erasmian 
Latinity — vigorous,  individual,  modern  as  it  was — but  in  the 
language  of  Machiavelli  and  Castiglione,  of  Montaigne,  of 
Shakespere,  of  the  Authorised  Version,  was  realised  that  union 
of  the  Old  and  the  New  for  which,  unknowing  what  he  asked, 
Erasmus  prayed ^ 


§  4.  Erasmus  and  the  Vernacular  Tongues. 

It  now  becomes  necessary  to  consider  the  attitude  of 
Erasmus  towards  the  vernacular  tongues  of  his  day.  In  doing 
so  it  will  be  impossible  to  confine  our  view  to  the  question  of 
language,  which  was  to  Erasmus,  as  it  is  to  us,  but  one  aspect 
of  the  larger  problem  of   nationality.      His   relation   to   the 

*  Pater,  Alariiis  the  Epicurean,  ii.  99. 

^  The  parallel  between  the  Ciceronian  in  Letters  and  the  Vitruvian  in 
Architecture  is  both  exact  and  instructive.  The  great  builders,  with 
Brunelleschi  at  their  head,  who  were  the  first  to  come  under  the  influence 
of  the  antique,  correspond  in  their  power  of  free  assimilation  to  such  scholars 
as  Vergerius  or  Ambrogio  Traversari.  The  purist  Serlio  in  the  i6th  century 
insisted  that  every  architect  must  observe  "Vitruvius'  rule  and  most  certain 
and  infallible  directions,"  since  "  in  every  art  there  is  one  more  learned  than 
another  to  whom  such  authority  is  given  that  his  words  are  fully  accepted 
and  without  doubt  believed."  Hence  "  the  writings  of  Vitruvius  ought  for 
their  worthiness  to  be  inviolably  observed."  But  no  sooner  had  this  doctrine 
taken  root  than  classicism  as  an  architectural  ideal  suddenly  crumbled,  as  a 
consequence  of  its  divorce  from  constructive  utility.  Serlio  is  the  Longolius 
of  the  building  art;  and  the  influence  of  the  two  men  is  precisely  similar  in 
their  respective  spheres. 


His  Knowledge  of  Vernacular  Speech      6i 


position  of  the  Italian  humanists  will  also  come  up  for  con- 
sideration. 

The  knowledge  of  modern  tongues  which  Erasmus  pos- 
sessed has  often  been  discussed.  It  is  curious,  however,  that 
his  own  allusions  to  it  leave  his  biographers'  still  in  doubt  as 
to  the  extent  of  his  ability  to  understand  any  native  speech 
other  than  Dutch.  We  are,  however,  in  no  uncertainty  con- 
cerning his  unwillingness  to  express  himself  in  anything  but 
sound  Latin.  Dutch  he  could  not  fail  both  to  understand  and 
to  speak.  Until  he  was  fourteen  years  of  age,  at  least,  it  was 
the  language  of  his  home  life.  We  have  sufficient  allusions  to 
such  a  familiarity  with  it  in  later  years  as  is  implied  in  his 
ability  to  follow  the  preaching  of  a  Friar  or  to  take  part  in 
conversation. 

As  regards  his  acquaintance  with  the  speech  of  Lower 
Germany  it  can  be  proved  that  he  had  a  traveller's  knowledge 
— easy  enough  to  acquire  for  a  native  of  the  Netherlands.  He 
writes  to  a  correspondent  at  Lubeck  with  an  apology  for  his 
Latin  :  "non  fastidio  linguae  nostratis,"  but  on  the  ground  that 
his  German  would  be  a  halting  performance  and  might  cause 
misunderstanding  I  A  student  of  the  University  of  Paris  for 
ten  years  and  more,  could  hardly  escape  a  working  facility 
in  French,  even  were  he  less  interested  in  the  manners  and 
thoughts  of  his  fellow-men  than  Erasmus.  The  evidence, 
however,  is  not  copious,  and  it  is  mainly  indirect.  But  it  is 
impossible  to  read  the  letter  describing  his  adventures  on  the 
road  to  Paris  in  February,  1500  (Nicholls,  No.  122,  Richter, 
No.  144)  without  concluding  that  Erasmus  was  fully  competent 
to  hold  his  own  incisively  with  his  inn-keeper.  Indeed  he 
expressly  says  that  the  burden  of  the  wrangle  fell  to  him  as 
his  travelling  companion  spoke  no  French.     It  may,  however, 

1  Mr  Mark  Pattison  for  instance  was  certainly  wrong  in  saying :  "  Erasmus 
had  passed  nearly  all  his  life  in  England,  France  and  Germany;  he  spoke 
not  one  of  those  three  languages."     Etuycl.  Brit.  Art.  "Erasmus." 

^  Eras.  Op.  iii.  16  D. 


62     Erasmus  and  the    Vernacular  Tongues 


be  gathered  from  a  passage  in  the  De  Pueris  that  Erasmus  had 
wrestled  not  happily  with  the  pronunciation'. 

On  the  other  hand  he  was  much  less  at  home  with  English. 
His  first  visit  to  this  country  was  very  short  and  was  passed 
wholly  in  learned  society.  His  later  visits  belong  to  a  period 
when  he  had  made  abstention  from  modem  tongues  a  prin- 
ciple. In  the  house  of  Sir  Thomas  More  he  found  the 
conversational  use  of  Latin,  if  not  the  normal  practice,  at  least 
one  gladly  adopted  in  presence  of  so  distinguished  a  guest. 
VVarham,  in  presenting  him  to  the  living  of  Adlington,  relieved 
him  of  residence  expressly  on  grounds  of  his  ignorance  of  the 
language  of  his  parishioners.  The  same  indifference  marked 
his  attitude  to  Italian.  The  learned  environment  in  which  he 
spent  his  Italian  sojourn  at  Bologna,  Venice  or  Rome  pre- 
cluded any  need  for  facility  in  what  he  would  have  called  the 
corrupt  dialects  of  the  peninsula.  He  rebuffed  the  grave 
Ruccellai  with  a  blunt  "  Surdo  loqueris  "  when  the  Florentine 
addressed  him  in  the  Tuscan  speech  which  in  his  eyes  was  in 
no  way  less  noble  than  its  mother-Latin.  Of  Spanish  he 
probably  acquired  some  slight  knowledge  from  intercourse 
with  officials  in  the  Netherlands,  although  the  evidence  of  it 
is  very  sparse.  To  Charles  V  and  his  Court  Spanish  was  the 
customary  language  and  Erasmus  was  in  an  honorary  sense  a 
member  of  that  Emperor's  Council. 

Such  evidence,  however,  does  not  close  the  question.  It 
is  clear,  for  instance,  that  the  author  of  the  Morine  Encomium 
and  of  the  Colloquies  was  one  able  to  observe  acutely  by  ear  as 
well  as  by  eye  as  he  went  on  his  quiet  way  through  the  world. 
Only  sharp,  clear-cut  perception  of  what  was  passing  could 
have  afforded  Erasmus  that  power  of  moving  freely  amidst  the 
facts  of  common  life,  that  insight  into  popular  foibles  and 
superstitions,  which  gave  the  edge  to  his  satire.  Again, 
Erasmus  had  something  of  the  feeling  of  the  philologist  for 
parallel  forms  and  for  etymologies;  he  saw  that  the  three 
^  Er.  Op.  i.  501  F.     Infra,  p.  199  s.f. 


Their  Uselessness  in  Education  63 

Romance  tongues  had  grown  out  of  Latin,  and  that  as  a  con- 
sequence they  might  be,  scientifically,  not  without  interest  to  a 
scholar^  We  find  express  allusion  to  the  employment  of  the 
modem  languages  in  this  manner. 

When,  however,  we  turn  to  the  use  of  the  vernacular 
tongues  for  purposes  of  literature  or  education  we  are  upon 
more  definite  ground.  The  popular  speech  has,  and  ought  to 
have,  no  claim  to  be  regarded  as  a  fit  instrument  of  literary  ex- 
pression. To  the  more  rigorous  humanists  the  mere  suggestion 
of  such  a  claim  was  a  standing  cause  of  irritation.  It  is  one 
thing  to  accept  as  established  facts  the  several  dialects  of  the 
common  people  and  to  use  them  when  need  compels.  But 
nothing  justifies  the  abandonment  of  a  universal,  highly- 
developed  and  historic  speech,  such  as  is  Latin,  for  a  series 
of  local,  rudimentary  and  obscure  jargons ^  For  these  are  as 
an  Oscan  or  Umbrian  dialect,  or  the  parlance  of  the  Suburra, 
to  the  finished  diction  of  Cicero  and  Vergil.  Nor  can  any 
beyond  the  most  meagre  employment  be  made  of  such  in 
education.  For  beginners  in  Latin  it  is  permitted  to  set  the 
subject  for  composition  in  the  vernacular*:  but  if  a  modern 
language  must  be  learnt  it  can  be  picked  up.  The  Strassburg 
School  Ordinance  of  1528— strictly  Erasmian  in  spirit — afifirms 
"Vernacula  lingua  loqui  in  ludo  nostro  piaculum  est,  atque 
non  nisi  plagis  expiatur."  A  modern  language  is  impossible 
as  a  school-subject  in  humanist  eyes.  To  take  one  reason 
alone — a  decisive  one.  Teaching  demands  before  all  things 
fixity,  definiteness,  uniformity  in  its  material.  In  the  depart- 
ment of  language  Latin  and  Greek  provide  precisely  those 
qualities  :  orthography,  accidence  and  syntax  are  determined. 
The  modern  dialects  have  none  of  these  indispensable  notes. 
It  may  be  safely  assumed  that  Erasmus  never  contemplated  a 
day  when  English,  French  or  German  could  attain  the  stage  of 

^  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  167. 

'  Erasmus  wonders  why  Albert  Dlirer  wrote  in  German :   Op.  i.  928  c. 

'  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  170. 


64      Erasmus  and  the   Vernacular  Tongues 

an  organically  developed  speech,  worthy  of  a  true  literary 
status,  and  that  he  viewed  with  distrust  the  efforts  of  Poliziano 
and  Bembo  to  secure  the  recognition  of  a  standard  Italian 
tongue.  ' 

It  is  strictly  pertinent  to  note,  in  the  next  place,  the  con- 
tempt which  Erasmus  avows  for  popular  stories,  folk-lore, 
and  traditional  tales  of  national  heroes.  He  especially  depre- 
cates their  use  with  young  children  who  should  rather  find 
their  imaginations  satisfied  with  moralised  stories  from  antiquity 
or  the  Old  Testament.  Erasmus  thus  again  reveals  his  lack 
of  concern  for  the  elements  of  national  life,  and  his  ignorance 
of  the  true  basis  of  national  culture.  He  does  not  see'  that 
the  classical  spirit  implies  a  respect  for  the  methods  of  antiquity, 
for  to  the  Greek  and  to  the  Roman  education  was  built  on 
national  traditions  in  their  local  setting.  To  Erasmus  the 
Arthurian  cycle,  to  take  one  instance,  is  but  trivial  nonsense. 
It  is  not  true  to  fact,  not  morally  edifying,  and  above  all  not 
clothed  in  notable  language.  In  this  important  aspect  of  the 
phrase,  the  historic  sense  was  lacking  to  every  strict  humanist : 
for  to  hardly  one  of  them  does  the  national  history,  unless  it 
be  identical  with  that  of  the  classical  ages,  make  any  appeal. 
The  attitude  of  Erasmus  reminds  us  of  that  of  Aeneas  Sylvius 
to  whom  it  seemed  futile  in  a  prince  to  waste  time  over  the 
story  of  the  nation  whom  he  was  called  upon  to  govern. 
"  Beware,"  he  writes  to  Ladislas,  the  young  king  of  Hungary, 
"of  wasting  time  over  such  a  subject  as  the  history  of  Bohemia 
or  the  history  of  Hungary.  For  such  would  be  but  the  pro- 
ductions of  mere  ignorant  chroniclers,  a  farrago  of  nonsense 
and  lies,  destitute  of  attraction  in  form,  in  style,  or  in 
grave  reflections."  Vives,  the  friend  and  correspondent  of 
Erasmus,  is   almost   alone   amongst   humanists   in    finding   a 

^  Yet  Erasmus  had  realised  this  when,  only  a  year  earlier,  he  had 
urged  in  the  Ciceronianus  that  true  Ciceronian  imitation  implied  obedience 
to  the  spirit  of  Cicero  and  to  the  methods  which  he  himself  pursued. 
Supra,  p.  54. 


Erasmus  and  Nationalism  65 

place  for  Monstrelet,  De  Commines,  and  Froissart  in  historical 
study  ^ 

Yet  Erasmus,  as  a  man  of  practical  sense,  accepted  the 
modern  State  as  a  fact,  and  service  to  the  community  as  one 
of  the  main  ends  of  Man,  and  therefore  of  education.  Good 
government  is  the  duty  of  prince,  noble,  and  burgher  alike. 
"  The  father  who  neglects  the  training  of  his  son  is  guilty  of 
offence  against  the  fatherland."  "Children  are  born  for  the 
State  and  for  God  " :  and  all  sound  education  will  fit  them  for 
their  place  in  Society  and  in  the  Family,  The  ultimate  utility 
of  the  higher  learning  lies  in  the  service  which  it  enables  a 
citizen  to  render  to  the  country  of  his  inheritance.  But  we 
must  not  interpret  the  claims  of  fatherland  too  strictly.  "  Love 
of  fatherland  is  good,  but  it  is  more  philosophic  to  regard 
things  and  human  beings  in  such  a  way  that  this  world  may  be 
looked  upon  as  the  common  fatherland  of  all."  We  should  ask 
"  not  where,  but  how  nobly  we  spend  our  lives."  This  is  con- 
formable to  his  reply  to  the  offer  of  the  citizenship  of  Zurich, 
"I  wish  to  be  a  citizen  of  the  whole  world,  not  of  a  single  city*." 
The  "  Respublica  Litteraria,"  as  Hutten  termed  it,  was  his 
ideal. 

The  reconciliation  of  the  practical  aims  of  Erasmus  with 
his  indifference  to  the  essential  characteristics  of  the  modern 
world,  and  with  his  positive  rejection  of  the  concept  of 
nationalism  in  education,  is  not  easy  to  find.  Erasmus  was  of 
German  stock,  and  was  proud  of  it.  Much  as  he  admired 
Italian  learning  he  had  no  yearnings  for  a  life  to  be  spent  at 
Rome.  But  he  was  dominated  by  the  ideal  of  a  universal 
culture,  within  which  racial  differences  would  sink  into  due 
subordination.  This  ideal,  as  we  have  seen,  was  intimately 
bound  up  with  the  revival  of  antiquity.  Now,  for  a  hundred 
years,  an  extraordinary — almost  inexplicable — restoration  of 
the  knowledge  of  the  ancient  world  had  been  in   progress. 

^  Vives,  De  Disciplinis,  p.  385. 
*  Eras.  Oj).  iii.  757  D. 

W.  c 


66     Erasrmts  and  the   Vernacular  Tongues 

Both  in  Art  and  in  Literature  the  new  time  had  absorbed  the 
fashion  and  spirit  of  the  old.  Why  should  not  the  same 
transfer  be  possible  in  respect  of  Speech  ?  The  Gaul  of  "  the 
Province,"  the  Lombard,  the  Northman  offer  examples  ot 
acceptance  of  a  new  tongue.  Given  a  common  culture,  in 
harmony  with  a  common  Church,  a  common  speech  might, 
nay  must,  follow,  if  the  chiefs  of  learning  were  in  earnest. 
The  Church  and  the  professions  had  proved  that  in  specific 
regions  of  thought  and  activity  such  a  step  to  universality  was 
attainable.  To  Erasmus  and  those  who  thought  with  him  the 
problem  was  of  deepest  moment  in  the  interests  of  civilisation. 
On  the  other  hand,  Erasmus  urges  the  use  of  the  vernacular  in 
preaching,  for  only  thus  can  the  faith  stir  the  emotions  and 
active  impulses.  It  is,  one  may  say,  a  point  of  Christian  duty 
for  a  churchman,  whose  functions  lie  in  that  direction,  to  stoop 
to  acquire  the  popular  tongue.  Yet  he  does  not  perceive  the 
essential  note  of  the  Lutheran  conflict — the  yearnings  of  the 
Germanic  self-consciousness,  and  the  claim  for  the  expression 
of  it  in  language,  and  in  ecclesiastical  order  and  independence. 
He  is  blind,  also,  to  the  fact  that  in  Italy  both  a  language 
and  a  literature,  independent  of  Latin,  were  growing  up  and 
that  this  development  was  fostered  by  certain  humanists  of 
undoubted  rank.  The  plea  for  Italian  was  urged  by  no  less  a 
scholar  than  Bembo,  who,  quite  consistently,  was  at  the  same 
time  the  leader  of  the  Ciceronian  purists.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  best  statement  of  the  case  for  the  Latinists  came  from  the 
pen  of  Franciscus  Floridus\  an  intimate  friend  of  Erasmus, 
and  like  him  a  keen  anti-Ciceronian.  It  will  be  of  interest  to 
summarise  his  argument,  as  expressing  the  judgment  of  the 
group  of  scholars  of  whom  Erasmus  is  chief.  The  date  is 
^537- 

^  On  Floridus,  cp.  Sabbadini,  in  Giomale  Star.  d.  Letteratura  Ital.,  viii. 
P-  .?33'  He  had  been  ardently  engaged  in  defence  of  Latin  for  some  time 
before  Erasmus'  death.  The  passage  here  summarised  is  from  his  Apologia^ 
p.  105. 


The  Argument  of  Floridus  67 

Floridus  deplores  the  apparently  increasing  use  of  the 
Italian  language.  Some  scholars  indeed  profess  to  regard  it  as 
worthy  of  the  same  care  and  elaboration  as  that  which  the 
Greeks  and  Romans  bestowed  upon  their  own  speech.  Such 
a  monstrous  blindness  to  the  light  reminds  us  of  the  Scythian 
or  the  Mede,  and  renders  Italy  a  derision  in  the  eyes  of 
Spaniards,  Frenchmen,  Englishmen,  or  Germans.  For  in  all 
those  countries  men  of  learning  prize  ever  more  and  more  the 
inheritance  of  the  ancient  tongues.  It  is  sheer  perversity  to 
compare,  as  some  do,  the  lyrics  of  Petrarch  to  the  hexameters 
of  Vergil,  or  the  light  and  easy  style  of  Boccaccio  to  the 
grave  periods  of  Cicero  ^ 

The  chief  argument  which  he  finds  for  the  adoption  of  the 
vernacular  is  this  :  the  language  of  the  home  and  the  nursery 
must  be  the  language  of  our  subsequent  life :  for  such  a 
language,  being  our  native  speech,  will  be  that  of  the  majority  of 
our  fellows.  Now  the  argument  from  the  majority  carries  no 
weight  with  a  wise  man ;  "  for  the  custom  or  convenience  of 
ten  thousand  hinds  is  not  to  be  weighed  against  those  of  a 
single  man  of  learning." 

The  pleas  for  the  vulgar  tongue — Floridus  is  an  Italian  and 
has  the  Italian  language  always  in  mind — are  met  by  a  series 
of  arguments.  First,  the  contention  from  usage  is  invalid 
when  we  consider  the  actual  facts.  There  is  no  such  thing  as 
"the  Italian  language."  A  Florentine  travels  to  Apulia  or  to 
Naples  ;  his  Tuscan  speech  is  to  the  natives  of  the  Kingdom 
as  the  speech  of  a  Tyrian  or  a  Bedouin.  In  Sardinia  or  in 
Sicily  he  would  run  risk  of  being  locked  up  as  a  lunatic  at 
large.  Let  him  go  farther  afield :  if  he  speak  Tuscan  in 
Germany,  France,  or  Spain  he  has  a  crowd  after  him,  and  is 

^  Cp.  the  attitude  of  certain  humanists  of  the  previous  century  towards 
the  great  Tuscans.  Niccoli  asks,  "Quos  tu  mihi  Dantes,  inquit,  quos 
Petrarcas,  quos  Boccatios  ?  Nam  quid  est  in  illis  quod  aut  admirandum  aut 
laudandum  cuiquam  videri  debeat  ?  "  L.  Aretini,  Z)m/<7f«j,  p.  60.  Sahitati 
regretted  that  Dante  had  not  written  in  Latin.     Ibid.  p.  59. 

5—2 


68      Erasmus  and  the   Vernacular  Tongues 

asked  if  he  has  lost  his  dancing  bear.  But  Latin  is  of 
universal  currency.  Apply  the  facts  to  literature  instead  of  to 
travel.  On  what  grounds  should  "  a  nation's  exploits  be 
recorded  in  that  nation's  tongue  "  ?  If  facts  are  worth  relating 
they  should  be  narrated  for  all  places  and  for  all  times :  not 
through  a  medium  which  is  current  for  some  hundred  square 
miles :  Florence,  Lucca,  Arezzo,  Siena  each  has  its  standard 
idiom.  How  then  is  the  vernacular  to  "save  labour"  to  the 
learner  ? 

Again,  the  Italian  dialects  are  unfixed,  imperfect,  and 
unequal  to  the  varied  demands  of  a  literature.  Consider  the 
position  of  Dante.  He  writes  in  a  language  still  fluid  and 
uncertain,  in  a  style  which  cannot  be  called  finished,  in  a 
word,  in  a  medium  unequal  to  the  distinction  of  his  subject. 
Boccaccio's  prose  for  similar  reasons  is  read  without  pleasure. 
Petrarch,  on  the  other  hand,  seems  to  have  reached  the  high- 
water  mark  in  Italian  verse,  but  he  uses  it  only  to  handle 
trivial  themes  :  whilst  Ariosto — a  first-rate  Latinist,  we  must 
remember — cannot  be  said  in  his  Orlando  to  equal  even  the 
second  or  third  rank  of  Roman  poets.  As  to  serious  com- 
position in  history  or  oratory  there  is  none  in  Italian 
(Machiavelli,  Guicciardini,  Castiglione  notwithstanding). 
Floridus  then  criticises  t.he  vulgar  tongue  from  the  point  of 
view  of  its  origin.  Italian  is  the  quintessence  of  barbarism, 
that  barbarism  which  overthrew  civilisation  itself  in  our  own 
land.  How  prefer  a  language  whose  roots  lie  in  the  invasions 
of  Goth,  Vandal,  and  Lombard  ?  What  elegance,  what  elabor- 
ation can  be  looked  for  from  such  a  source  ?  To  take  but  two 
instances :  the  contrast  between  classical  metres  and  that 
which  passes  for  metre  in  ItaUan ;  and  the  decay  of  inflections. 
The  Scyth  and  Numidian  may  do  without  these  aids  to  exact 
expression,  can  civilised  man?  There  are  those  who  would 
drive  out  of  language  every  word  which  cannot  be  traced  back 
to  the  barbarous  enemies  of  our  race.  Language  and  literature 
are,  both  of  them,  works  of  human  skill  and  not  unconscious 


Their  Defects  as  Literary  Instruments     69 

products  of  nature'.  Further,  Italian  is  avowedly  poor  in 
vocabulary,  and  needs  to  be  copiously  enriched.  Why,  if 
Latin  has  to  be  thus  relied  upon,  not  recognise  the  fact  and 
use  it  as  the  current  tongue  as  it  stands? 

If  scholars  who  cultivate  both  the  ancient  and  the  modern 
tongues  imagine  that  they  gain  repute  thereby  they  are  in  error. 
They  must  know  that  their  fame  rests  upon  their  skill  in 
classical  letters,  and  upon  that  alone.  Perhaps,  however,  they 
only  wish  to  prove  to  the  world  how  easy  it  is  for  a  truly 
learned  man — who  has  spent  twenty  years  in  attaining 
eminence  in  Greek  and  Latin — to  be  an  "  Italian  scholar  "  in 
a  couple  of  months. 

The  points  therefore  upon  which  the  humanist  argument 
turns  are  these.  The  vernaculars  lack  fixity,  elaboration,  and 
universality — the  latter  even  in  a  single  country.  They  are  not 
adaptable  to  the  manifold  needs  of  literature;  they  lack  serious 
gravity ;  they  demand  no  effort  in  acquisition,  and  that  which 
can  be  picked  up  by  mere  use  or  instinct  is  hardly  "  human  " 
so  much  as  "animal."  They  are  the  products  of  barbarism, 
and  are  barbarous  by  nature.  They  are  local,  limited  in 
range,  without  authority. 

An  argument  which  scarcely  appears  in  the  criticism  of 
Floridus,  but  which  was  always  of  weight  with  the  humanist, 
was  that  the  vernacular  lacks  the  element  of  "eternity*."  It 
was  a  standing  principle  amongst  scholars  that  nothing  worthy 
of  perpetuation  might  be  expressed  otherwise  than  in  fine 
Latinity.  And  closely  allied  with  this  was  the  deep-rooted 
desire  of  the  man  of  the  Renaissance  to  find  a  place  in  the 
elect  company  of  the  great    names   of  old.      How  was  this 

^  It  is  important  to  note  that  the  first  grammar  of  the  Italian  tongue 
was  published  in  1516;  the  work  of  Giovanni  Fortunio :  Regole  Gram- 
tnaticali  della  Volga r  Lingtia. 

*  Filelfo,  for  instance,  writing  in  1477  says  of  Tuscan  :  "hoc  scribendi 
more  utimur  iis  in  rebus  quarum  memoriam  nolumus  transferre  ad  posteros." 
Cp.  Voigt,  Wiederbelebimg,  ii.  422. 


yo      Erasmus  and  the   Vernacular   Tongues 


possible  if  men  of  Letters  should  permit  uncouth,  local 
dialects  to  supersede  the  dignity  of  the  universal  speech? 
That  nationalism  in  politics  as  against  the  Empire,  in  religion 
as  against  the  Church  of  Rome,  in  language  and  in  literature 
as  against  the  classics — one  movement  in  several  aspects — was 
the  abiding  note  of  the  modern  world — this  was  in  no  way 
realised  by  Erasmus. 

But  the  most  effective  pleading  for  the  new  tongue  was, 
notwithstanding,  the  production  of  one  of  the  chief  of  the 
Latinists,  Pietro  Bembo.  It  need  cause  no  surprise ;  for 
Bembo  had  done  his  best  ^to  relegate  Latin  to  the  category  of 
the  dead  languages.  His  Dialogue  on  the  Lingua  Volgare  was 
written  in  15 12.  He  turns  the  argument  from  dialectic  variety 
by  pleading  for  a  standard  or  classical  Italian  to  be  established 
on  the  authority  of  Dante,  Boccaccio,  and  Petrarch.  The 
Dialogue  contains  also  an  alternative  canon — viz.,  that  the 
Italian  tongue  be  accounted  that  which  is  accepted  in  the 
Court  of  Rome',  the  idiom,  inflectional  system  and  pronun- 
ciation commonly  understood  by  ecclesiastics  and  men  of 
affairs  gathered  at  the  Vatican  from  all  parts  of  Italy.  We 
here  come  upon  the  first  deliberate  effort  to  erect  a  rule  of 
strictly  classical  Italian  upon  a  norm  against  which  no  charge 
of  provincialism  could  be  raised.  The  Dialogue  is  in  large 
part  occupied  by  a  critical  study  of  the  material  out  of  which 
an  authoritative  grammar  could  be  compiled.  Bembo  was 
wont  to  complain  that  Fortunio  had  pirated  this  matter — from 
MS.  copies  circulating  in  Rome — and  issued  it  in  his  Kegole 
as  his  own. 

The  substantial  argument  of  Bembo  is  contained  in  the 
following  passage^,  which  may  fitly  close  this  chapter : 

"  II  Volgare  e  a  noi  piu  vicino  ;  quando  si  vede  che  nel 
Volgare  tutti  noi  tutta  la  vita  dimoriamo;  il  che  non  aviene  del 
Latino :  si  come  k  Romani  huomini  era  ne  buoni  tempi  piu 

^  Bembo,  Delia  Volgar  Lingua  (1525)  f".  xii. 
2  Bembo,  op,  cit.  f°.  iiii. 


The  Argument  of  Bentbo  yi 

vicina  la  Latina  favella  che  la  Greca ;  conciosia  cosa  che  nella 
Latina  essi  tutti  nascevano,  et  quella  insieme  col  latte  dalle 
nutrici  loro  beeano  et  in  essa  dimoravano  tutti  gli  anni  loro 
communemente,  dove  la  Greca  essi  apprendevano  per  lo  piu 
gia  grandi  et  usavonla  rade  volte,  et  molti  de  loro  peraventura 
ne  r  usavano  ne  1'  apprendevano  giamai.  II  che  a  noi  aviene 
della  Latina ;  che  non  dalle  nutrici  nelle  cuUe,  ma  da  maestri 
nelle  Schuole,  et  non  tutti,  anzi  pochi,  1'  apprendiamo,  et  presa 
non  a  ciascun  hora  la  usiamo,  ma  di  rado,  et  alcuna  volta 
non  mai.  Cosi  e...et  questo  anchora  piu  oltre ;  che  a  noi  la 
Volgar  lingua  non  solamente  vicina  si  dee  dire  che  ella  sia 
ma  natia  et  propria :  et  la  Latina  straniera.  Che  si  come  i 
Romani  due  lingue  haveano,  una  propria  et  naturale,  et  questa 
era  la  Latina,  1'  altra  straniera,  et  quella  era  la  Greca ;  cosi  noi 
due  favelle  possediamo  altresi :  1'  una  propria  et  naturale  et 
domestica,  che  e  la  Volgare;  istrana  et  non  naturale  1'  altra,  che 
e  la  Latina." 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  EDUCATIONAL  AIM  OF  ERASMUS. 

§  I.     The  General  Purpose  of  Education. 

It  results  from  the  considerations  laid  down  in  the  last 
chapter  that  the  ideal  of  culture  as  understood  by  Erasmus  was 
ultimately  social  in  trend.  The  uplifting  of  the  standard  of 
religion  and  conduct  in  the  community  was  the  motive  which 
gave  urgency  to  his  plea  for  knowledge.  He  saw,  moreover, 
that  the  cause  of  religion  and  conduct  was  intimately  bound  up 
with  better  political  and  social  conditions.  "  Barbarism  " — the 
term  so  common  with  him — implied  not  only  superstition  and 
ignorance  of  sound  learning,  but  cruelty,  reckless  war,  and  bad 
government.  The  one  remedy  for  this  universal  darkness  was 
the  union  of  enlightened  Christianity  and  the  wisdom  of  the 
ancients.  Erasmus  realised  the  mediaeval  order  as  a  firmly 
compacted  whole,  whose  amelioration  could  be  attained  only 
by  a  force  operating  upon  and  transforming  the  entire  fabric. 
That  force  was  learning. 

Now  it  is  an  invariable  law  that  the  accepted  ideals  of  the 
adult  generation  shape  its  educational  aims;  that  the  school- 
master obeys  and  does  not  lead.  It  was  inevitable,  then,  that 
wherever  Humanism  gave  its  impress  to  a  community  or  to 
a  group  a  speedy  effect  thereof  would  be  manifested  in  the 
School.     It  was  not  enough  for  the  citizens  of  Florence  and 


The  General  Purpose  of  Education         jT) 

Venice  to  find  themselves  emancipated  from  darkness,  their 
children  must  from  the  very  first  be  saved  from  its  shadow.  In 
the  belief  in  the  importance  of  a  cultural  ideal  is  involved  of 
necessity  a  corresponding  conviction  of  the  need  of  a  new 
education. 

The  organised  life  of  the  civilised  community  is  to  Erasmus 
the  only  life  worth  living :  his  educational  aim,  therefore,  is 
a  social  aim.  It  does  not  stop  short  with  the  perfection  of  the 
individual,  the  preparation  of  a  self-contained  life.  When  he 
speaks  of  the  knowledge  of  Christ  and  His  glory  as  "  totius 
eruditionis  scopusV'  he  by  no  means  implies  that  the  end  of 
right  training  is  personal  salvation.  He  has  given  in  the  De 
Civilitate  Morum  puerilmm  his  description  of  education  in 
definite  terms  :  "  Sicut  prima  (pars),  ita  praecipua,  est,  ut  te- 
nellus  animus  imbibat  pietatis  seminaria,  proxima  ut  liberales 
disciplinas  et  amet  et  perdiscat,  tertia  est,  ut  ad  vitae  officia 
instruatur,  quarta  est  ut  a  primis  statim  aevi  rudimentis  civilitati 
morum  adsuescat^"  Now,  as  viewed  by  Erasmus,  each  of  these 
aims  is  bound  up  with  the  rest,  just  as  each  points  to  a  joint 
factor  in  social  well-being.  "  Piety  and  Good  Letters  " — Sturm's 
sapiens  et  eloquens  pietas — a  union  which  adds  wisdom  to  faith 
and  reverence  to  learning,  stand  opposed  to  ignorance  and 
wickedness.  It  can  be  amply  shown  from  Erasmus'  writings 
that  he  regarded  all  that  supplies  men  with  higher  motives  and 
worthier  interests,  that  affords  warnings  and  examples  from  the 
past,  as  a  religious  force.  The  religious  end  of  education  there- 
fore was  hardly  viewed  by  him  as  a  thing  apart.  Everything 
that  enlightens  ultimately  raises  the  individual  and  purifies  the 
social  order.     In  spite  of  uninformed  criticism,  the  classical 

'   From  Ciceronianus  (1528):   Op.  i.  p.  1026  B. 

-  De  Civ.  Morum  (1526):  Op.  i.  p.  1033  B,  c.  Another  definition  is 
given  in  Colioquia,  Op.  i.  p.  653:  "  Tria  mihi  curae  sunt,  ut  proficiam  in 
probitate  morum.  Dein,  si  quid  nequeam,  certe  tuear  illibatam  innocen- 
tiam  ac  famam.  Postremo  paro  mihi  bonas  literas  ac  disciplinas  in  quovis 
vitae  genere  usui  futuras." 


74        *The  Educational  Aim  of  Erasmus 

literatures,  rightly  handled,  notably  served  this  purpose.  In 
the  training  of  the  young  we  find  that  Erasmus  lays  little  stress 
on  observances  or  on  religious  dogma,  but  much  on  personal 
piety  and  the  elements  of  Christian  faith  and  practice. 

Next,  Erasmus  brings  into  prominence  the  claim  of  the 
State  or  Community  to  the  services  of  its  members,  and  for 
such  service  the  child  must  be  fitted  by  education.  Such  an 
end  is  strictly  in  accord  with  antique  ideals.  Parents  are  urged 
to  be  careful  of  their  duty  to  the  fatherland;  to  neglect  the 
right  training  of  the  child  is  to  ignore  this  obligation.  A  brave 
and  efficient  citizen  is  the  gift  which  a  father  owes  to  his  own 
city.  In  the  same  way  the  prince  and  the  noble  are  exhorted 
to  qualify  their  sons  by  sound  education  for  their  grave  re- 
sponsibilities. Beyond  this,  when  Erasmus  dwells  upon  the 
need  of  courtesy  and  good  m'anners  he  is  considering  a  man  as  a 
member  of  Society — a  dim  reflex  of  that  social  distinction  which 
is  embodied  by  Castiglione  in  //  Cortegiano.  In  Germany,  at 
least,  this  was  of  no  slight  importance  amongst  the  ends  of 
culture. 

The  family,  again,  has  its  claims.  By  education  the  boy 
must  learn  how  to  bear  himself  as  a  dutiful  son,  able  and 
willing  to  take  upon  himself  part  of  the  burdens  of  his  parents. 
His  distinction  brings  joy  and  credit  to  the  home  ;  just  as  its 
grace  and  charm  are  increased  by  the  skill  or  learning  of  the 
daughters.  Sir  Thomas  More's  household  and  that  of  Pirck- 
heimer  are  more  than  once  quoted  by  Erasmus  to  prove  his 
contention  that  a  woman's  life  is  made  more  useful,  by  serious 
education,  in  each  of  the  capacities  that  may  fall  to  her.  The 
home,  moreover,  gains  in  dignity  by  the  share  which  the  father 
takes  in  the  children's  training.  The  Roman  parents  at  the 
best  period  never  resigned  their  direct  concern  for  this  to  the 
exclusive  charge  of  another. 

Erasmus  lays  little  stress  on  the  professional  aspect  of 
education.  But  he  knows  that  a  churchman,  a  theological 
student,  an  administrator,  a  landed  proprietor,  a  statesman  are 


The  Ends  of  Education  7  5 

all  made  more  efificient  in  their  own  spheres  by  sound  learning'. 
Erasmus  particularly  inveighs  against  a  common  type  of  parent 
who  will  accumulate  estate  for  a  son  with  untiring  zeal,  but 
who  is  wholly  careless  as  to  the  education  which  alone  can  fit 
him  to  govern  it.  It  is,  he  urges,  a  profound  mistake  to  sup- 
pose that  training  for  practical  life  is  to  be  won  by  actual 
experience  of  life  itself^.  On  the  other  hand  he  declares  that 
preparation  for  a  career  ought  not  to  be  made  subordinate  to 
purely  literary  attainment.  Here,  however,  he  is  referring  to 
adult  life  ;  and  the  warning  is  just  a  protest  against  neglect  of 
duty  for  devotion  to  dilettantism  and  self-culture. 
^  Yet  it  must  be  carefully  noted  that  the  social  end  is  to  be 
attained  by  the  way  of  development  of  individuality  through 
liberal  training.  There  are  not  two  educations  :  training  re- 
garded as  preparation  for  social  service  does  not  differ  in 
substance  or  in  method  from  the  education  of  the  individual. 
The  difference  lies  in  the  application.  Up  to  a  certain  limit, 
which  Erasmus  placed  at  the  i8th  year,  and  Elyot  somewhat  later, 
education  should  be  uniform  for  all.  Then  supervenes  the  period 
of  gradual  specialisation.  But  not  even  then  may  literature  be 
wholly  abandoned  in  favour  of  professional  studies.  What  is 
desirable  is  that  such  studies  should  take  the  form,  partly  at 
least,  of  concentration  upon  those  aspects  of  letters  which  sub- 
serve each  particular  pursuit.  Law,  Theology,  Teaching  will 
all  acquire  an  element  which  is  "liberal  "  from  such  a  method 
of  enquiry. 

^  Strictly  in  Erasmus'  vein  is  the  claim  for  this  effect  of  erudition  made 
in  the  Privilegittm  of  the  royal  Printing-press  granted  by  Francis  I  to 
Robert  Estienne.  "  We  are  persuaded  that  those  sound  studies  will  give 
birth  in  our  kingdom  to  theologians  vi'ho  shall  teach  the  sacred  doctrines 
of  religion  ;  to  magistrates  who  shall  administer  justice  without  partiality 
and  in  the  spirit  of  public  equity  ;  and  finally  to  skilled  administrators, 
the  lustre  of  a  State,  who  will  be  capable  of  sacrificing  their  private  interest 
to  affection  for  the  public  good.... Such  are  among  the  benefits  that  may 
reasonably  be  looked  for  from  sound  studies,  and  from  them  almost  exclu- 
sively."    Quoted  from  Miss  Lowndes'  translation,  Motttaigne,  p.  24. 

2  This  is  in  part  the  argument  of  the  De  Pueris:  infra,  p.  191,  §  12. 


76        *The  Educational  Aim  of  Erasmus 

We  may  perhaps  doubt  whether  Erasmus  had  reached  a 
clear  reconciliation  of  social  and  individual  aims  in  education. 
At  one  time  he  speaks  as  though  the  best  way  of  rendering 
service  to  the  community  lies  in  developing  one's  own  person- 
ality. At  another,  he  is  more  conscious  of  the  risks  attaching  to 
a  bold  claim  for  free  individual  expansion,  and  to  the  exclusive 
temper  of  the  self-absorbed  scholar.  Yet  this  is  certainly  true. 
He  felt,  and  he  expressed,  the  full  strength  of  the  reaction 
against  the  mediaeval  University  training,  which  was  primarily 
concerned  with  professions  of  Law,  Medicine,  and  Theology. 
Erasmus  has  the  distinctive  note  of  the  Humanist,  that  he  is 
first  of  all  a  teacher  of  liberal  disciplines,  upon  which  when 
maturity  is  reached  technical  knowledge  may  be  superimposed. 
Sir  Thomas  Elyot  expresses  this  position,  interpreting  Erasmus, 
as  he  so  often  does,  to  Englishmen:  "pure  and  excellent 
learning,  if  it  be  translated  to  another  study  of  a  more  gross 
quality  vanisheth  and  cometh  to  nothing."  Wherefore,  he  goes 
on,  "  if  children  were  continually  retained  in  the  right  study  of 
very  {i.e.  sound)  philosophy  " — which  is  the  Humanist  sapientia, 
or  eruditio — "  until  they  passed  the  age  of  2 1  years,  and  were 

then  set  to  the  Laws they  should  undoubtedly  become  men 

of  so  excellent  wisdom  that  throughout  all  the  world  should  be 
found  in  no  commonweal  more  noble  counsellors'."  This  is 
said  in  the  truest  spirit  of  Humanism. 

It  may  be  asked  at  this  point  whether  the  position  thus 
defined  is  consistent  with  the  overweening  importance  assigned 
to  eloquence  by  Erasmus  and  all  the  other  masters  of  the 
Revival  ?  Was  not  "  oratory  "  largely  a  professional  aptitude — 
for  Church,  Court,  or  Diplomacy?  In  considering  this  it  is 
necessary  to  recall  the  origin  of  that  ideal  of  the  completely 
educated  man,  the  "orator."  It  reached  the  Italian  Humanists 
mainly  through  Quintilian.  It  preceded,  in  the  history  of  the 
Renaissance,  the  ideal  of  the  "Courtier."  As  understood 
by  Quintilian  the  perfect  "Orator"  was    the  noble   type  of 

^  The  Governoitr,  i.  p.  I41. 


The   Three  Factors  of  Human  Nature     jj 

publicist,  a  combination  of  personal  presence,  of  virtue,  and  of 
learning,  as  well  as  of  eloquence.  He  was  the  good  man,  the 
highly-informed  man,  trained  in  oratory :  each  of  these  factors 
was  essential  to  the  complete  product.  Both  "Orator"  and 
"Courtier"  came  to  signify  to  Italian  society  of  the  15th  and 
1 6th  centuries  the  full  range  of  qualities  which  should  mark 
in*  a  modern  community  the  perfect  man  of  the  world — scholar, 
man  of  affairs,  man  of  courtesy.  In  this  way  it  happened,  in 
the  15th  century  as  in  the  first,  that  what  were,  to  begin  with, 
the  characteristics  of  the  highest  professional  type  were  trans- 
ferred to  the  general  ideal  of  higher  education.  So  in  ancient 
Rome  the  training  of  the  "  Orator "  was  the  education  of 
hundreds  of  young  men  who  had  no  thought  of  becoming 
advocates  or  debaters  :  and  in  modern  Italy  or  England  the 
maxims  of  the  "  Courtier  "  were  eagerly  studied  by  young  men 
who  would  never  approach  a  Court.  To  Erasmus  the  training 
of  a  gentleman  was  identical  with  an  education  in  learned 
eloquence. 

§  2.     The  Three  Factors  of  Human  Nature. 

The  great  Italian  educationalists  of  the  Revival  built  up 
their  curriculum  upon  a  union  of  Roman  precedents  with  the 
courtly  education  of  the  later  Middle  Age.  They  took  account, 
therefore,  of  each  side  of  human  personality.  Erasmus,  how- 
ever, held  a  somewhat  different  position.  In  his  view,  that  side 
of  development  which  concerned  physical  excellence  was  wholly 
subordinate.  The  absorption  in  sport  and  arms  which  he  notes 
as  characteristic  of  the  upper  ranks  of  Teutonic  society  he 
regards  as  a  serious  hindrance  to  intellectual  advance.  'Gross,' 
'boorish,'  'cruel'  are  the  epithets  which  seem  to  spring  naturally 
to  Erasmus'  lips  when  he  contemplates  the  average  parent  of 
the  land-holding  class  in  Germany.  There  was,  to  Erasmus, 
much  risk  in  pressing  the  claims  of  the  body  in  education.  In 
Italy  it  was  far  otherwise.  We  know  that  feudalism  had  left 
but  little  impress  on  the  society  of  the  Renaissance  ;  and  the 


yS         The  Educational  Aim  of  Erasmus 

climate  and  the  conditions  of  town  life  there  rendered  vigorous 

physical  activity  a  needful  discipline.     Apart  from  which  the 

social  graces  filled  a  large  place  in  personal  distinction.     But 

1  fXo  Erasmus  it  is  enough  that  children  be  kept  in  health,  for  the 

\/^'  body  is  but  a  means,  an  instrument,  and  has  no  true  excellence 

/       beyond  that.     Erasmus,  we  do  not  forget,  had  been  a  monk ; 

neither  by  aptitude  nor  disposition  had  he  any  inclination  to 

physical  skill. 

Passing  to  the  second  and  third  constituents  of  human 
personality,  the  mind  and  the  spirit,  the  point  of  view  of 
»  Erasmus  has  been  already  outlined.  Ingenium  or  inie/lecius, 
^>-  as  the  seat  of  ratio,  or  active  reasoning,  is  the  chief  difiFerentia 
^  of  Man.  But  the  teacher  may  not  regard  this  faculty  as  exist- 
ing independently  of  the  religious  instinct.  For  the  term  which 
expresses  the  highest  product  of  ingenium,  viz.,  philosophia, 
covers  both  knowledge,  conduct,  and  religion.  Philosophia  is 
wisdom  applied  to  life :  the  opposite  is  stultitia,  which  is 
ignorance  applied  to  life'.  The  borderland  oi pietas  and  viores 
is  indefinable  ;  and  the  soundest  forms  of  entditio  inevitably 
develop  that  bonus  animus  whose  expression  is  pietas.  It  is 
impossible  to  realise  the  Erasmian  concept  of  the  relation  of 
wisdom  to  spiritual  well-being  unless  we  grasp  clearly  his  notion 
of  eruditio  (or  sapie?ttia)  as  "learning  in  use,"  or  "wisdom 
interpreted  for  living."  It  was  something  quite  other  than 
"  research  "  in  our  modern  sense.  Hence  (though  the  words 
are  those  of  his  intimate  friend  Sadoleto),  "  devotion  to  philo- 
sophy serves  as  the  best  preparation  for  all  sides  of  honourable 
action,  and  at  the  same  time  brings  man  nearer  to  God."  The 
education  of  "the  spirit,"  therefore,  to  the  earnest  humanist, 

^  Op.  i.  497  E:  "quid  est  hominis  maxime  proprium?  Juxta  rationem 
vivere.  Quid  est  perniciosissimum  ?  Stultitia."  On  the  other  hand  ratio 
may  lead  to  harm,  for  eruditio  without  virtue  as  its  end  does  hurt  to  the 
character.  But  if  the  consensus  of  the  wisdom  of  mankind  is  rightly 
applied — i.e.  if  education  is  sound — good  and  not  evil  may  be  counted 
upon  as  the  result. 


The  Erasmian  Psychology  79 

and  so  to  Erasmus,  was  the  natural  crown  of  all  sound  training; 
it  did  not  demand  a  special  section  of  the  curriculum  to  itself. 
That  Erasmus  was  by  nature  practical  rather  than  devotional 
in  his  concept  of  religion,  that  "  in  things  of  the  spirit "  con- 
duct mattered  more  to  him  than  dogmatic  equipment,  that 
mysticism  meant  little  to  him,  are  undeniable.  But  it  is  pro- 
foundly untrue  to  insinuate,  as  his  opponents  often  did  in  his 
lifetime,  and  certain  critics  have  done  since,  that  his  perception 
of  the  religious  factor  in  personality,  and  consequently  in  educa- 
tion, was  feeble  in  itself  and  insincerely  held. 

There  remains  to  be  considered  the  function  of  education 
in  respect  of  this  training  of  character  and  intellect.  The 
psychology  of  Erasmus  has  never  been  very  carefully  examined. 
It  was  mainly  identical  with  that  of  Plutarch,  and  has  therefore 
much  in  common  with  the  Aristotelian  analysis.  The  three 
factors  in  mental  activity  are  Naiura,  ratio,  us7is  sive  exerci- 
tatio\  By  natura  Erasmus  understands  an  innate  capacity, 
both  moral  and  intellectual.  These  blank  capacities  are 
affected  from  outside  by  experience,  notably  by  disciplina  and  by 
institiitio  or  instruction.  On  the  intellectual  side  such  instruc- 
tion is  by  the  way  of  information  orderly  presented,  or  scientia. 
On  the  moral  side  it  comes  through  example,  warning,  or 
advice,  whether  drawn  from  books  or  persons.  Ratio  is  the 
thinking  endowment — its  organic  relation  to  natura  is  never 
defined — by  which  the  learner  judges,  orders,  and  stores  up  in 
memory,  external  knowledge,  and  by  which  the  teacher  exhibits 
his  matter  in  right  method.  In  education,  therefore,  ratio  is 
at  once  the  enlightened  reasoning  of  the  teacher  operating 

1  Christ.  Mat  rim.,  Op.  v.  710D:  "  Naturam  voco  aptitudinem  quandam 
ad  discendum  quod  traditur.  Ratio  praeceptis  judical  quid  expetendum, 
quid  fugiendum.  Usus  ducit  in  habitum  id  quod  praescriptum  est."  Cp. 
De  Pueris,  infra,  p.  191,  §  11  s.f.  On  the  Aristotelian  doctrine  which 
Erasmus  has  in  mind  in  this  analysis  cp.  Ethics,  i.  7.  9,  and  Burnet, 
Aristotle  on  Education,  p.  27;  "  the  fracticat  life  of  the  rational  part  of 
us"  is  the  differentiating  function  of  man.     Cp.  Becher,  Erasmus,  p.  32. 


So         The  Educational  Aim  of  Erasmus 

upon  the  learner,  and  the  active  reason  of  the  learner  reaching 
out  to  meet  it.  The  term  is  often  used  by  Erasmus  in  either 
sense.  But  invariably  it  implies  faculty  in  act.  Ratio  is  the 
peculiar  quality  of  Man  :  "  ratio  facit  hominem,"  as  he  ex- 
plains; "ratio  ducit  naturam'."  Usus  is  practice,  at  school  or 
in  life,  in  aptitudes  acquired,  and  the  application  to  circum- 
stances of  knowledge  assimilated.  A  boy  applies  a  rule  of 
grammar  in  composition ;  a  statesman  a  lesson  from  history  ; 
both  by  virtue  of  usus. 

Such  are  the  definitions  of  the  principal  terms  employed. 
Now  tiatura,  the  mental  self,  comes  into  existence  with  very 
few  instincts,  with  no  innate  ideas,  but  with  large  capacities ; 
lower  animals,  on  the  other  hand,  possess  sharply-defined  and 
highly-developed  instincts,  but  slight  power  of  advance  beyond 
these.  This  marks  man's  superiority  and  proves  the  over- 
whelming importance  of  education.  The  metaphors  borrowed 
by  Erasmus  to  express  this  abstract  capacity  for  taking  form 
are  various :  the  ploughed  but  unsown  field ;  the  twig  pliant 
and  as  yet  unshaped ;  soft  wax  or  clay,  and  others^. 

This  capacity  reveals  at  a  very  early  stage  certain  tendencies, 
notably  to  memory,  to  activity,  and  to  imitation  :  it  is  intensely 
receptive :  its  absorptive  powers  work  upon  good  or  evil 
material  with  equal  avidity.  Hence  the  need  for  profitable 
occupation  from  the  very  first,  that  room  be  not  left  for  evil 
influences,  always  ready  to  encroach  upon  the  empty  chambers 
of  child-nature^.  It  is  the  peculiar  function  of  the  mother  to 
"  shelter  the  nursling  from  wrong  impression."  Hence  Erasmus 
^x<  acutely  sets  aside  enquiries  as  to  the  age  at  which  education 

y  ^  It  need  not  be  pointed  out  how  defective  is  the  analysis  of  ratio 

presented  by  Erasmus,  who  leaves  in  obscurity  his  view  of  the  place  of 
the  imagination  and  the  emotions.  However,  Erasmus  always  moves 
more  easily  in  the  sphere  of  practical  aims  than  in  that  of  theory,  so  that 
in  dealing  directly  with  educational  method  his  precepts  are  sounder  than 
his  psychology.     Ratio  may  often  be  best  translated  by  Training,  cp.  p.  197. 

*  Cp.  Tdgel,  Pdiiag.  Ansch.,  p.  37. 

'  "Sapiens  industria  parentum  occupat  naturam."     Op.  i.  497  E. 


The  Power  of  Education  8 1 

should  begin.  From  birth,  nay  before  it,  the  manifold  opera- 
tion of  nurture  and  environment  is  at  work.  It  is  not  a  ques- 
tion as  to  the  7th  year  or  the  5th  or  the  3rd,  as  the  authorities 
propound  it ;  from  the  first  day  of  his  existence  the  child's 
education  has  begun. 

But  Natura  includes  another  factor  besides  abstract  general 
capacity  for  development :  it  contains  a  special  quality  which 
varies  with  each  individual  and  constitutes  the  basis  of  person- 
ality ^  This  individual  quality  is  originally  but  a  capacity  for 
receiving  a  special  bent  from  external  forces  :  it  may  be  due 
to  inheritance,  but  when  once  recognised  it  may  respond  in 
marvellous  fashion  to  careful  education.  Training,  therefore, 
is  all  important.  Nature  gives  potentialities,  education  trans- 
forms them  into  realities.  "  Efficax  res  est  natura,  sed  banc 
vincit  efficacior  institutio."  "  Homines,  mihi  crede,  non  nas- 
cuntur  sed  finguntur''^."  Further,  "Educatio  superat  omnia." 
By  training  we  may  eradicate  evil  tendency  due  to  heredity ; 
but  bad  education  will  extinguish  a  bent  to  higher  things. 
Moreover,  and  we  here  reach  the  climax  of  the  Erasmian 
optimistic  view  of  Man,  we  have  in  Natura  a  capacity  which 
in  virtue  of  its  .divine  origin  is  "apt  for  reason,"  prone  to 
obedience,  and  therefore  capable  by  training  of  indefinite 
advance.  Nay,  by  education,  diligently  and  skilfully  directed, 
the  rudis  massa  of  the  nursling  may  be  moulded  into  the  visible 
image  of  God^. 

It  is  a  sanguine  view  of  the  possibilities  of  education.  But 
we  must  remember,  first,  that  the  Erasmian  concept  includes 
the  Platonic  view  of  the  function  of  Nurture — that  unconscious 

^  De  Pueris,  infra,  §  16,  §  29s.f.,  and  §  25  s.f.  Just  as  an  ox  or  an 
ass  is  put  to  the  plough  or  the  pack-saddle,  so  the  dullard  must  for  his 
own  sake  be  treated  as  fit  only  for  the  farm  or  work-shop.  Again,  there 
are  children  whose  bent  lies  towards  Music,  Arithmetic  or  Geography. 
"  Nature "  ought  to  be  followed  in  such  cases.  In  Discipline  also  the 
same  holds  good  :  infra,  p.  205,  §  24. 

*  Op.  i.  493  B,  infra,  pp.  184,  186,  §§  4  and  7. 

*  De  Pueris,  infra,  p.  187,  §  7  s.f.     Cp.  Becher,  Erasmus,  p.  12. 

w.  6 


82         The  Educational  Aim  of  Erasmus 

presentation  and  absorption  of  impressions,  moral,  intellectual 
and  aesthetic,  which  is  the  true  note  of  Greek  culture,  and  the 
conspicuous  absence  of  which  is  the  crucial  defect  of  popular 
educational  opinion  in  modern  England.  In  the  next  place,  it 
is  abundantly  clear  that  Erasmus  did  not  identify  education 
with  literary  instruction  in  a  narrow  sense.  There  is  much  in 
his  view  of  morality  which  presages  Herbart's  concept  of  the 
dependence  of  conduct  upon  the  "circle  of  thought."  Stultitia 
is  moral,  not  less  than  intellectual,  shortcoming :  just  as  a  wide 
range  of  interests  lifts  the  mind  above  unworthy  preoccupa- 
tions. Hence  instruction  {eruditio,  itistitiitio)  is  a  most  compre- 
hensive force,  operating  upon  a  free  will,  whose  determinations 
are  easily  fixed  in  the  direction  of  reasonable  action.  This 
conviction  of  the  influence  of  the  human  intelligence  in  mould- 
ing the  character  of  men  is  not  peculiar  to  the  Humanist.  The 
typical  man  of  the  world  of  that  age  was  Machiavelli :  and 
he  arrives,  though  from  an  opposite  standpoint,  at  the  same 
generalisation.  "  All  that  have  reasoned  on  civil  government, 
and  all  -history,  prove  that  it  is  necessary  that  he  who  frames 
a  Commonwealth  and  ordains  laws  in  it  should  pre-suppose 
that  all  men  have  their  bent  to  ill-doing :  that  they  desire  to 
practise  the  wickedness  of  their  minds  whenever  opportunity 
serves."  Hence,  he  continues,  follows  the  necessity  of  Laws : 
for  Laws  make  men  good,  seeing  that  by  laws  Education  is 
framed,  and  by  Education  men,  though  naturally  evil,  are 
gradually  trained  to  set  examples  of  virtue  in  the  State.  Thus 
the  man  of  Letters  and  the  man  of  Affairs  agree  :  innate  good- 
ness (Erasmus)  or  innate  wickedness  (Machiavelli),  fostered 
(Erasmus),  or  checked  (Machiavelli),  by  education,  produces 
notable  virtue.  That  'virtue'  to  each  of  the  two  thinkers  meant 
a  different  ideal  does  not  affect  the  argument :  in  both  cases 
contribution  to  the  well-being  of  the  community  is  the  prime 
content,  and  in  both  the  determining  force  is  Education'. 

^  Cp.  Machiavelli,  Discorsi,  i.  3. 


The  Argumetit  for  Small  Schools  83 

§  3.     Limitations  of  the  Educational  Ideal. 

This  broad  and  liberal  view  of  the  aim  of  Education  repre- 
sents the  essential  principle  of  humanism,  and,  except  on  the 
side  of  the  culture  of  the  body,  does  not  differ  in  type  from 
that  of  the  great  Italians  from  Vergerius  to  Sadoleto.  But,  in 
the  process  of  application  of  ideals  to  practice,  the  limitations 
imposed  by  social  and  historical  circumstance  call  for  careful 
noting. 

j-  First,  Erasmus  laid  it  down,  with  ample  reason,  that  his 
standard  of  efficiency  demanded  either  a  small  school  con- 
ducted by  brilliant  scholars  or  the  method  of  home  tuition. 
The  latter  alternative  depended  inevitably  upon  the  nature  of 
the  home  in  question :  where  there  is  right  example,  and  due 
respect  for  learning,  private  tutorial  instruction  may  be  the  best 
choice.  Under  no  circumstances  was  a  Religious  House  a  fit 
seminary  for  the  young:  schola  aut  publica  aid  nulla^  was  his 
doctrine.  But  endowed  or  civic  schools  competent  to  the 
lofty  functions  of  liberal  education  scarcely  existed.  Colet's 
foundation  excited  his  admiration,  as  at  once  civic,  lay,  and 
humanist.  But  the  majority  of  local  schools  were  prisons  and 
torture-chambers,  homes  of  darkness  and  barbarity.  Further, 
Erasmus  propounded  a  curriculum  which  should  carry  youth 
to  the  threshold  of  manhood,  when,  the  stimulus  of  the  teacher 
being  withdrawn,  the  spontaneous  interests  of  the  pupil  could 
be  counted  upon  to  carry  onward  the  pursuit  of  learning  into 
adult  life.  Now  all  this  implies  an  education  for  the  prosperous 
class  :  the  gentry,  the  wealthy  burgher,  the  state  official.  The 
poor  man  can  only  secure  education  by  civic  or  private  benevo- 
lence, a  form  of  charity  which  he  earnestly  commends ^ 

^  De  Pueris,  infra,  p.  204,  §  23  s.f. 

^  Op.  i.  508  E,  infra,  p.  209,  §26:  Op.  v.  7 16  A.  With  Erasmus  the 
education  of  the  poorer  class  was  the  object  of  pious  wish,  a  most  suitable 
work  of  charity  in  individual  cases  of  special  talent.  Erasmus,  like  his 
humanist — and  other — contemporaries,  has  no  consciousness  of  a  problem 

6  —  2 


84         The  Educational  Aim  of  Erasmus 

In  the  next  place,  the  choice  of  instrument  is  rigidly  con- 
ditioned :  the  classical  literatures  are  alone  admitted.  This 
carried  with  it  the  elimination  of  purely  national  elements  in 
education,  and  the  substitution  for  them  of  a  universal  culture. 
This  accounts  for  the  fact  that  the  influence  of  the  Erasmian 
ideal  in  Germany  was  inferior  to  that  of  Melanchthon,  with  that 
Protestant  Teutonism  which  coloured  all  his  educational  propa- 
ganda. Perhaps  it  was  in  the  Jesuit  schools  that  the  curriculum 
of  Erasmus  was  most  adequately  presented. 

That  the  new  education  found  no  place  for  instruction  in 
natural  phenomena  is  hardly  to  be  set  down  to  its  disadvantage. 
There  was  as  yet  no  science  of  nature  available  for  teaching'. 
Astronomy  was  attaining  fixity,  it  is  true :  but  both  geography 
and  natural  history  still  rested  on  unsound  knowledge  of  facts 
and  perfunctory  classification.  The  age  of  over-sea  discovery 
was  but  dawning  in  Northern  Europe.  "Cosmography,"  there- 
fore, meant,  even  yet,  Strabo  and  Mela.  Modern  geography 
did  not,  could  not,  yet  exist.  The  life  df  plants  and  animals 
was,  as  in  previous  centuries,  the  sport  of  credulity  and  a  priori 
hypothesis.  The  vernacular  was  beneath  consideration  :  it  was 
a  mere  dialect.  Mathematics  had  no  human  interest.  Modern 
historians  were  but  annalists. 

to  be  faced.  He  knew  that  on  his  own  lines  popular  education  was 
impossible ;  and  indeed  he  may  be  said  to  have  emphasised  the  deep 
distinction  between  the  educated  and  the  uneducated  classes.  It  is, 
however,  clear  that  he  regarded  training  in  rudiments  of  religion  and 
duty  as  the  fitting  education  for  those  who  had  to  work  with  their  hands. 
Preachers  must  use  the  vernacular,  and  so  familiarise  their  congregations 
with  Scripture  and  Church  doctrine.  "  I  see  no  reason  why  the  unedu- 
cated should  be  kept  from  the  New  Testament."  Instruction  of  this 
sort,  Catechisms,  Hymns,  with  private  reading  of  Scripture  will  form  a 
training  which  in  its  degree  will  be  a  compensation  to  those  to  whom 
learning  is  inaccessible.     Cp.  Glockner,  Bildimg  und  Erziehung,  p.  97. 

1  In  the  De  Pueris,  §§  10,  30,  we  have  instances.  Topsell's  The 
Historie  of  Fonre-Footed  Beastes,  which  in  its  original  Latin  form  was 
perhaps  the  most  popular  Natural  History  throughout  Europe  in  the 
century  1560 — 1660,  will  illustrate  the  same  argument. 


The  Instruments  of  Instruction  85 

Briefly  put,  the  only  available  material  for  instruction  was 
that  contained  in  the  ancient  writers.  Partly,  because  through 
them  alone  could  mind  come  into  contact  with  mind.  Partly, 
because  subsequent  enquiry  had  added  nothing  to  the  scientific 
wisdom  therein  contained.  Partly,  that  outside  of  them  there 
was  no  organised  secular  knowledge  at  all.  And  Erasmus  knew 
that  facts  which,  however  interesting,  are  formless  and  unre- 
lated, have  no  value  for  the  education  of  the  young.  Finally, 
the  doctrine  that  education  can  only  follow  opinion  is  clearly 
realised.  Erasmus  is  for  ever  proclaiming  that  "  opinion  "  both 
in  clergy  and  laity  must  be  reformed  before  scholars  can  effect 
their  ends.  Rulers,  parents,  nobles  must  move  before  instruc- 
tion can  be  moulded  upon  new  lines.  The  absence  of  state 
organisation  throws  the  onus  upon  the  Church  and  the  govern- 
ing classes.  A  new  standard,  a  fresh  subject  of  education  is 
impossible  without  the  strong  impulse  of  social,  or  professional 
interest. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE   BEGINNINGS   OF    EDUCATION. 

§  I.     Earliest  Care. 

The  first  responsibilities  towards  the  young^  are  of  much 
concern  to  Erasmus,  as  indeed  they  are  to  most  humanists  who 
write  upon  Education.  Erasmus  realised  that  heredity  has  a 
certain  influence,  which  a  man  of  intelligence  will  recognise  in 
choosing  his  wife.  It  is  often  possible  to  affirm  that  the  wrong 
bent  of  a  child  is  congenital  and  may,  therefore,  prove  to  be 
ineradicable.  But  the  mother  may  do  much  to  secure  that  her 
child  be  born  with  a  nature  apt  to  good  impressions  by  diligent 
care  for  her  own  health,  by  maintaining  equability  of  temper 
and  moderation  in  all  things.  The  nursling  must  be  the 
mother's  exclusive  care.  The  custom  of  putting  the  new-born 
child  to  nurse  is  condemned — on  the  best  classical  prece- 
dents ^ 

^  Erasmus  treats  of  this  subject  in  the  De  Pueris  and  De  Clir.  Matrim. 
It  has  often  been  said  that  the  humanists  had  no  message  to  offer  concern- 
ing the  education  of  young  children.  This  is,  as  a  fact,  wholly  untrue. 
They  had  of  course  an  imperfect  concept  of  what  was  necessary.  But  the 
essential  point  is  that  they  realised  that  there  was  a  problem.  The  Middle 
Age  had  neither  a  view  upon  the  beginnings  of  teaching  nor  a  sense  that  a 
view  of  any  kind  was  needed. 

^  Plutarch's  tract  irepi  irafSwv  d7&ry^j  was  appealed  to  in  this  matter, 
as  in  so  many  other  precepts  upon  the  training  of  the  young.  Erasmus 
follows  Plutarch  very  closely,  as  did  most  humanists.  It  was  one  of  the 
earliest  Greek  treatises  to  be  translated  into  Latin  (by  Lionardo  Bruni 
d'  Arezzo)  in  the  course  of  the  Revival. 


Unfitness  of  Women  as  Educators         87 

Children  acquire  through  unconscious  imitation  much, 
even  at  this  earliest  stage,  which  abides  for  life.  Hence  the 
importance  of  the  right  education  of  women.  Cornelia  and 
other  Roman  mothers  are  a  standing  proof  of  this.  Feminine 
influence  is  specially  enduring  in  the  beginnings  of  speech. 
In  this  respect  the  danger  arising  from  contact  with  ignorant 
women  servants  is  hard  to  overrate.  In  physical  care,  in 
manners,  in  the  simple  duties  of  truth  and  reverence,  the 
responsibility  during  the  early  stage  falls  wholly  upon  the 
mother. 

It  is  a  grave  question  at  what  period  this  oversight  of 
women  should  be  superseded.  There  is  beyond  doubt  a 
reminiscence  of  the  celibate  ecclesiastic  in  the  view  of 
Erasmus  and  of  Sadoleto  that  the  mother's  place  should  be 
taken  by  the  father  or  tutor  about  the  fifth  year.  Both  depre- 
cate the  influence  of  women  even  at  the  first  stages  of  boy 
life.  Erasmus  thinks  that  they  lack  self-restraint,  are  indulgent 
and  cruel  by  caprice,  a  consequence,  no  doubt,  of  vicious  train- 
ing which  precluded  all  serious  thinking  upon  life  and  duty. 

Yet  Erasmus  affirms  constantly  that  no  force  for  good  can 
surpass  the  child's  home  atmosphere.  Nurture  and  example 
are  the  stimulus  to  the  formation  of  an  unconscious  standard 
of  conduct,  intelligence  and  taste.  In  a  pious  household  it  is 
customary  for  the  child  to  see  food  sent  from  table  to  the 
home  of  a  suff'ering  poor  neighbour ;  the  walls  will  have  illus- 
trations of  virtuous  and  brave  actions.  Interest  in  religious 
truths  will  be  aroused.  "  Nee  fere  impii  liberi  nisi  parentum 
culpa. " 

§    2.       HE.4LTH    AND    PHYSICAL    WeLL-BEING    OF   YoUNG 

Children. 

Erasmus,  like  Locke,  had  learnt  from  his  own  experience 
the  importance  of  health  as  a  condition  of  efficient  intellectual 
life.     His  view  of  the  relation  of  mind  and  body  was  derived 


88  The  Beginnings  of  Educatio7i 

from  Aristotle.  It  is  of  no  great  concern  to  Erasmus  whether 
that  view  was  or  was  not  scriptural :  the  body  may  be  a  prison, 
or  a  temple,  or  a  garment ;  in  any  case  these  are  metaphors 
only.  He  is  solely  concerned  with  the  practical  question  :  its 
abstract,  philosophical  formulation  has  no  concern  for  him. 
This  at  least  is  clear  to  him  :  the  relation  of  body  and  mind  is 
organic,  whence  a  constant  interaction  between  the  two.  Just 
as  spiritual  character  is  reflected  in  face  and  bearing,  so  anger, 
envy,  desires,  are  closely  bound  up  with  bodily  states.  Thus 
he  sees  the  whole  question  on  more  than  one  side.  As  an  end 
in  itself  bodily  culture  makes  little  or  no  appeal  to  him.  The 
soul  is  the  end :  it  is  enough  that  the  body  fulfil  reasonably  its 
behests.  In  this  he  differs  from  the  earliest  humanists,  and 
from  ancient  ideals.  We  must  not  forget  that  the  "  cult  of  the 
body"  in  Germany  meant  a  warlike  ferocity  of  unparalleled 
coarseness,  not  the  grace  of  Apollo  or  of  the  Ephebi  of 
Athens. 

Yet  during  the  earlier  years  of  childhood — to  the  seventh 
,at  least — much  care  is  needed.  In  this  the  mother's  action  is 
bf  chief  importance.  Erasmus  enters  into  some  detail'.  Too 
much,  or  too  rich,  food,  spices,  wine,  are  all  forbidden  ;  the 
mind,  not  less  than  the  body,  suffers  from  such  indulgences. 
Too  much  sleep  is  equally  injurious.  Exercise,  he  expressly 
urges,  should  be  free  and  spontaneous.  Dress  should  always 
allow  of  such  activity.  Girls  suffer  more  than  boys  from 
custom  and  from  parental  vanity.  Smart,  cramping  dress, 
with  sleeves  and  trains  and  collars,  not  only  hampers  them 
physically  but  begets  childish  conceit.  If  parents  must  have  an 
object  for  foolish  pride  of  this  kind  let  them  buy  a  monkey 
and  work  off  their  vanity  by  dressing  it  up  instead.  Moreover, 
it  is  of  great  importance  under  what  conditions  of  air  and 

'  Eras.  Op.  v.  710  E — 711  A.  Erasmus  has  in  mind  advice  given  by 
Aristotle,  De  Generatione.  All  is  to  be  done  arid  allowed  by  way  of  the 
Mean.     See  also  Op.  i.  447  a,  b. 


The  Place  of  Physical  Training  89 

climate  children  are  nurtured.  Foul  air  and  warm  temperatures 
are  injurious.  The  Germans,  he  often  records,  are  grievous 
offenders  in  this  regard.  Yet  the  hardening  by  exposure — thin 
dress,  bare  legs,  no  hat,  has  a  critic  in  Erasmus.  Baths  are 
good,  in  moderation.  Sadoleto  deprecates  the  idea  of  washing 
as  often  as  once  a.  day,  "in  northern  fashion." 

Erasmus  has  observed  the  effects  of  the  imitative  instinct  in 
bodily  affections.  Hence  the  care  which  must  be  exercised  as 
respects  companionship.  Contagion,  bodily  and  mental,  is  a 
risk  to  which  "  the  moist  and  tender  bodies  of  the  very  young" 
are  particularly  liable.  Stammering,  some  eye-affections,  and 
nervous  tricks  are  readily  acquired  from  others.  And  he  warns 
against  allowing  intercourse  with  crying,  peevish  and  irritable 
companions.  'I'he  dangers  involved  reveal  themselves  only 
gradually,  but  they  are  very  hard  to  eradicate  in  later  years. 
Games,  fresh  air,  regular  habits,  no  fasting,  no  night-work  are 
his  prescriptions  for  the  health  of  the  young  boy  or  girl :  "  ut 
corpore  bene  composito  animus  sit  ad  institutionem  habilior^" 
It  was  objected  to  Erasmus  that  he  was  exceeding  the  Christian 
norm  in  his  concern  for  the  body ;  a  judgment  which  he 
scornfully  rejected.  He  has,  however,  wholly  outgrown  the 
mediaeval  concept  of  the  need  of  depressing  the  body  in 
the  interests  of  the  spirit. 

None  the  less  he  is  careful  always  to  say  that  he  will  not 
regard  the  vigour  of  an  athlete  as  a  compensation  for  lack  of 
learning.  A  grown  man  needs  just  enough  health  to  go  along 
with.  The  "Orator" — the  man  of  affairs  and  society — will 
need  no  doubt  a  training  in  gesture  and  bearing :  such  out- 
ward aptitudes  are  the  complement  of  the  inner  aesthetic 
results  of  polite  letters. 

^   Op.  V.  712  B.     Quintilian  advises  gymnastic  exercises  for  an  orator, 
to  enable  him  to  cultivate  gesture.     So  Erasmus,  Op.  v.  963. 


90  The  Beginnings  of  Education 


%  3.     Home  Instruction. 

Erasmus  would  prefer  that  the  foundations  of  instruction 
should  be  laid  at  home  and  that  the  mother  and  father  should, 
in  this  respect  also,  qualify  themselves  to  guide  the  growing 
mind.  Systematic  teaching  will  hardly  begin  before  the 
seventh  year.  But  before  that  certain  rudiments  may  well  be 
imparted.  In  religion,  for  example,  the  sacred  name  of  the 
Father  and  of  the  Redeemer  will  be  taught :  the  reverence  due 
to  Scripture  :  the  simple  meaning  of  Baptism  :  the  protecting 
presence  of  the  Guardian  Angel.  Such  teaching  will  be 
associated  with  regular  observance  of  Christian  worship.  In 
intimate  dependence  on  religion  stands  the  elementary  morality 
of  childhood  :  obedience,  respect,  and,  above  all,  truthfulness. 
Lying  is  the  worst  vice  of  childhood.  Tales  and  proverbs, 
read  from  ancient  history  and  Old  Testament  Scripture  ahke, 
form  the  material  for  such  instruction.  But  parents  must 
remember  that  all  such  training  is  nullified  by  examples  of 
coarseness  or  indulgence  on  their  part.  As  to  knowledge — 
the  most  important  duty  is  to  impart  the  first  facility  in  Latin 
Grammar.  Here  Erasmus  touches  "  praeludia  quaedam  "  of 
education.  For  instance  the  alphabet  and  the  first  steps  in 
reading  and  writing  should  be  learnt  always  by  way  of  play. 
Then  good  articulation  and  pronunciation  must  be  insisted  on. 
Following  this  may  come  the  naming  of  objects,  in  the  con- 
crete or  in  picture.  But  objects  are  clearly  valued,  at  this 
stage  at  least,  only  as  aids  to  linguistic  advance.  There  is  to 
be  no  use  of  the  vernacular  :  Latin  has  become  the  natural 
means  of  communication.  Hence  the  necessity  of  keeping 
menials  at  arm's  length.  We  are  reminded  of  Montaigne's  ex- 
perience, although  every  humanist,  Vives,  Melanchthon,  Sturm, 
prescribed  the  same  rule.  But  the  note  of  this  stage  is  this  : 
"usque  ad  annum  septimum  tantum  novalis  praeparatur  ad 


A   Case  of  Discipline  ^      9 1 

sementum^"     Aristotle  had  fixed  the  fifth  year  as  the  earliest 
at  which  compulsory  exercises  might  begin. 

Erasmus  had  much  to  say  respecting  discipline  during  this 
period.  He  insists  that  the  method  of  training  must  be  "  per 
lusum  " — by  way  of  pleasant  device,  and  by  kindly  interest.  He 
quotes  the  case  of  a  mother  who  ruined  her  little  daughter's 
nature  by  sheer  cruelty.  "  The  child  could  as  yet  hardly 
speak  properly  when  she  took  her  in  hand  to  train  her  as  a 
lady  of  society."  The  process  involved  beating  a  little  girl  of 
six  until  she  fainted :  yet  the  mother  was  not  yet  26  years 
of  age.  "  I  for  my  part,"  says  Erasmus,  "  would  gladly  have 
seen  this  tyrant  thrashed  in  the  child's  stead.  For,  you  see,  it 
was  really  an  aggravated  case.  Supposing  that  the  'instruction* 
in  question  was  genuinely  worth  giving,  even  so  it  was  a  wicked 
way  of  going  to  work.  But  here  was  some  trivial  nonsense  of 
conventional  manners — and  for  that  she  tortured  her  own 
child^"  No,  all  discipline  and  all  method  for  the  young  has 
as  its  aim  to  win  and  not  to  drive.  Undoubtedly  the  content 
of  the  instruction  in  this  stage  is  slight,  but  the  genius  of 
Erasmus  is  shown  in  his  insistence  that  the  teaching  of  such 
young  children  is  a  problem  worth  solving^ 

^  Eras.  Op.  v.  710  D,  Arist.  Polit.  vii.  17;  his  objection  is  that  premature 
intellectual  work  might  interfere  with  physical  excellence.  Cp.  Burnet, 
Aristotle  on  Education,  p.  103,  5.  Elyot  fixes  seven  years;  Sturm  be- 
tween six  and  seven;  Quintilian,  and  many  humanists,  refused  to  state  a 
limit. 

'^  Eras.  Op.  v.  7 1 2  D  :  a  very  important  passage. 

^  Erasmus  is  almost  alone  in  urging  the  importance  of  careful  observa- 
tion of  temperament  and  capacity  in  the  very  young:  " non  mediocris  artis 
est  instituere  primam  aetatem."  Op.  v.  715  B.  There  are  not  a  few  parents 
who  can  make  no  allowance  for  childhood  and  wish  their  children  to  be 
born  grown  up.  The  "petty  school"  in  England  of  the  16th  and  17th 
centuries  was  a  deplorable  institution :  even  Brinsley  could  propose  that 
"  to  teach  them  (little  children)  would  help  some  poor  man  or  woman  who 
knew  not  how  to  live  otherwise."  Cp.  Foster  Watson,  Curriculum,  p.  6. 
Erasmus,  in  his  sense  of  the  importance  of  the  foundations  of  education, 
strikes  a  most  modern  note. 


92  The  Begmnings  of  Education 


§  4.     School-life  and  Home  Instruction. 

A  momentous  decision  has  now  to  be  made.  Shall  the 
boy  remain  at  home  or  shall  he  go  to  school  ?  Erasmus  would 
ideally  prefer  that  a  boy  at  the  age  of  seven  should  attend 
a  day  school  from  his  own  home,  and  work  after  school  hours 
under  direction  of  a  tutor. 

At  this  age  the  child's  special  bent  of  mind  and  temper  is 
in  great  part  revealed.  He  is  able  to  endure  systematic  mental 
work  and  is  benefited  by  social  intercourse  with  his  equals. 

A  wise  parent  will  have  already  followed  a  well-considered 
scheme  of  training,  which  leads  directly  to  the  stage  of  school- 
life  :  and  thus  will  be  competent  to  decide  the  question  which 
now  confronts  him.  Erasmus  is  not  able  to  lay  down  a 
uniform  procedure,  though  some  points  are  clear.  The  father 
is  the  best  educator,  if  only  he  be  duly  qualified.  First  he  has 
nothing  but  denunciation  for  the  monastic  hoarding  school 
removed  from  public  observation  and  control  :  education 
is  a  matter  of  civic  responsibility'.  Aristotle  and  Plato  ad- 
vocated a  '  public '  school  in  preference  to  private  ventures. 
Yet  {a)  the  existing  schools  are  thoroughly  unsatisfactory  (he 
is  referring  to  the  local  grammar  schools,  the  Cathedral  schools, 
&c.),  their  staffs  are  worthless ;  the  head-masters  are  there  by 
the  favour  of  careless  and  ignorant  governors.  "  Drunken, 
broken  down,  imbecile,  they  teach  in  miserable  hovels  :  as 
though  they  turn  out  pigs  instead  of  citizens.  Such  is  the 
seed-plot  of  the  State^!"  There  is  {b)  further  the  risk  of 
herding  a  large  gathering  of  boys  together ;  for  inevitably  in 
such  a  mingling  of  characters  evil  has  an  undue  chance. 

Again  individual  instruction  is  out  of  the  question  where 
classes  are  large  and  parents  have  no  control  over  the  type  of 

'  Eras.  Op.  i.  504  D.      Infra,  p.  209.     For  the  reference  to  Plato  and 
Aristotle,  Op.  v.  713  c. 
«  Op.  V.  713  c,  D. 


The  Qualifications  of  the   Tutor  93 

master  engaged.  In  collegiate  or  higher  schools  language 
teaching  is  thoroughly  bad  ;  and  the  more  ambitious  boys  are 
by  the  time  they  are  15  or  16  hankering  after  freedom,  or 
university  courses,  and  degrees  which  will — save  the  mark  ! — 
give  them  the  status  of  teachers  themselves.  So  that  Erasmus 
feels  driven  to  propose  that  one  tutor  be  engaged  to  teach  five 
or  six  boys',  who  then  enjoy  the  benefits  of  companionship, 
emulation  and  personal  interests,  whilst  not  losing  the  stimulus 
that  home-life  supplies.  The  parent,  indeed,  has  no  right  to 
disown  his  responsibility  at  any  time  during  the  education  of 
his  son.  The  choice  of  the  tutor  or  the  school  by  no  means 
implies  that  the  father  has  abdicated.  How  valuable  wise 
supervision  may  be  was  recognised  in  ancient  Rome :  it  was 
common  in  Athens. 


§  5.     The  Qualifications  of  the  Master. 

The  Tutor  must  be,  first  of  all,  a  man  of  high  character, 
worthy  of  fullest  confidence.  He  must  be  active,  vigorous  and 
of  healthy  habit.  His  age  should  be  such  as  to  secure  ex- 
perience, but  not  such  as  to  remove  him  from  sympathy  with 
active  youth.  His  great  aim  will  be  to  kindle  spontaneous 
interest.  Manner  is  of  importance  ;  he  must  not  be  gloomy  in 
appearance,  nor  passionate ;  he  must  be  serious,  indeed,  but 
patient,  remembering  that  he  too  was  once  a  boy.  He  will  be 
on  thoroughly  frank  and  friendly  terms  with  the  parents  and 
will  be  trusted  by  them.  But  there  will  be  "  liberalis  quaedam 
reverentia  "  withal.  Learned  he  must  be;  indeed,  without  a 
high  qualification  as  a  student  he  has  no  right  to  his  post. 
Erasmus  is  dismayed  at  the  low  estimate  which  most  parents 
form  of  the  tutor's  functions.  His  pay  is  less  than  that  of  a 
cook,  and  his  selection  a  matter  of  far  less  thought.  A  man 
will  often  give  away  the  appointment — to  oblige  a  friend ;   a 

^  Op.  V.  716  A. 


94  ^^^  Beginnings  of  Education 

mother  is  often  more  careful  of  her  pet  dog\  The  essential 
marks  of  his  erudition  are  his  knowledge  of  Latin  and  Greek, 
his  breadth  of  reading  and  his  mastery  of  sound  conversational 
Latin.  A  university  degree  is  never  named  as  a  qualification, 
which  is  evidence  of  the  divorce  still  subsisting  between 
humanist  study  and  the  northern  university.  Erasmus  sets 
undoubtedly  a  very  lofty  standard  of  attainment  before  his 
ideal  master.  Admitting  that  his  functions  as  a  teacher  will 
have  a  comparatively  narrow  range,  he  should,  notwithstanding, 
have  covered  the  whole  field  of  learning  as  contained  in 
classical  literature;  and  in  any  case  have  acquaintance  with 
the  principal  subjects  therein  treated  of  Writers  are  to  be 
read  not  merely  as  stylists,  but  as  authorities  on  the  various 
arts  and  sciences.  History,  geography,  astronomy,  mythology, 
philosophy  and  theology ;  the  arts  of  war,  agriculture,  of 
architecture ;  the  accounts  given  of  trees,  plants,  animals,  of 
customs  and  antiquities — these  are  to  be  known,  and  the  whole 
fabric  of  ancient  culture  realised  in  living  fashion  by  the 
perfect  scholar.  A  right  grasp  of  the  Erasmian  concept  of 
scholarship  will  save  us  from  much  shallow  criticism  of  the 
Renaissance  ideal  of  knowledge  and  of  education.  Naturally 
a  man  of  such  erudition  may  find  it  difficult  to  adapt  his 
teaching  to  the  child-mind.  Here  comes  the  third  qualifica- 
tion required  of  the  master ;  his  insight  into  the  moral  and 
intellectual  disposition  of  the  pupil,  and  his  ability  to  order 
discipline  and  instruction  accordingly.  Erasmus  shows  a  most 
remarkable  power  of  observation  on  his  own  part  in  regard  to 
personal  bent,  capacity  and  disposition  in  boys.  He  insists 
that  such  insight  is  as  easy  to  acquire  as  it  is  essential.  Looks, 
expression,  gesture,  degree  of  self-control,  facial  conformation, 
personal  habits   in   respect   of  dress   and  speech,  temper  in 

^  No  woman  is  competent:  "praeter  naturam  est  feminam  in  masculos 
habere  imperium."  Cp.  i.  504  c,  and  Becher,  Die  Ansichten,  p.  8.  For 
the  denunciation  of  similar  indifference  by  Italian  humanists  cp.  Woodward, 
Vittorino,  p.  201. 


Importance  of  the   Teaching  Art  95 

games,  all  carry  their  message  to  a  skilful  observer.  Intel- 
lectual taste  and  capacity  are,  he  affirmed,  always  purely 
individual;  ready  perception  of  such  special  endowments  is 
the  first  step  towards  adapting  instruction  to  the  pupil.  The 
master  must  be  competent  to  adjust  means  to  ends'.  Young 
boys  entering  upon  new  and,  at  first  stages,  unattractive  subject- 
matter  must  be  won  by  patience,  by  incentives  of  rivalry  and 
reward,  by  devices  such  as  pictures,  stories  and  moral  lessons. 
The  tutor  will  welcome  the  presence  and  co-operation  of  the 
father  in  stimulating  the  desire  to  excel.  Excess  of  preparatory' 
work,  undue  stress  on  learning  by  heart,  ill-judged  themes  for 
composition,  all  imply  that  the  master  forgets  what  a  boy  is. 
The  teacher  must  never  take  his  own  mental  interests  and 
capacities  as  his  guide  either  in  discipline  or  instruction. 
"  Remember  that  your  pupil  is  a  boy  still,  and  that  you  were  a 
boy  yourself  not  so  long  ago."  Then  the  master  will  show 
himself  at  once  reasonable  and  humane. 

Erasmus  regarded  the  creation  of  a  new  type  of  master, 
private  or  public,  as  the  first  condition  of  educational  reform. 
That  he  himself  set  forth  an  ideal  hard  to  attain,  he  was  well 
aware.  To  provide  for  this  pressing  need  is  the  urgent  duty  of 
an  enlightened  Prince.  The  rightly  equipped  master  ranks 
with  wise  kingship,  upright  officials  and  a  devoted  clergy,  as 
one  of  the  four  pillars  of  national  well-being.  He  elaborated 
his  first  picture  of  a  modern  master  for  Colet's  school.  He 
would  have  found  it,  had  he  known,  realised  in  the  person  of 
Vittorino  da  Feltre,  in  the  famous  school  of  Mantua  nearly  a 
century  before. 

1  Op.  i.  513  A.  The  place  of  interest  in  learning  was  thoroughly 
realised  by  Erasmus.  The  order  of  its  development  is  not  very  consistently 
worked  out,  but  it  is  somewhat  as  follows:  spontaneous  interest  in  play; 
love  and  respect  for  teacher ;  derived  love  for  knowledge  following  upon 
the  personal  bond ;  fear  of  blame  and  of  falling  below  proper  self-respect ; 
desire  for  piaise,  which  is  identical  with  the  man's  love  of  Fame.  Op.  i. 
1213— 4 


g6     The  Beginnings  of  Systematic  Instruction 


§  6.     The  Beginnings  of  Systematic  Instruction. 

The  Erasmian  education  began,  as  we  saw,  unconsciously. 
Speech,  i.e.  Latin  speech,  must  be  acquired  as  early  as  the 
home  conditions  admit.  In  some  cases  a  child  might,  like 
Montaigne,  be  so  fortunate  as  to  acquire  good  conversational 
Latin  before  the  end  of  the  fifth  year.  This,  indeed,  is  the 
natural  method  of  learning  Latin.  In  this  way  articulation, 
pronunciation  and  expression  will  be  cultivated.  Vocabulary 
will  be  derived  from  object  teaching,  and  the  Colloquies  are 
full  of  instances  of  this  use  of  external  things  in  instruction. 
As  word-forms  come  gradually  into  use,  arrangement  of  simple 
inflections  will  follow  :  but  of  systematic  grammar  there  will  be 
at  first  very  little.  Ancient  stories,  historical  and  mythical,  and 
descriptions  of  animal  and  plant  life,  all  illustrated  by  pictures ', 
will  be  told,  and  conversation  leading  up  to  moral  truths  built 
upon  them.  Travellers  bring  stories  of  wonder,  modern  history 
also  narrates  incidents  which  are  of  interest,  and  which  when 
remembered  may  be  helpful  later  on.  It  is  remarkable  to  note 
the  important  place  which  teaching  of  this  kind  occupies 
in  Erasmus'  ideal ;  and  how  elaborately  he  has  worked  it  out 
as  an  element  of  home  education.  Undoubtedly  it  was  in- 
struction about  objects  rather  than  through  objects,  and  it 
had  a  dual  aim  :  linguistic  as  well  as  quasi-realist.  Still  it  was 
devised  on  true  grounds  of  child  interests  and  went  as  far, 
perhaps,  as  the  state  of  scientific  knowledge  then  allowed. 
For  the  school  can  only  adapt  such  knowledge  as  its  age 
provides.  The  Colloquies  were  as  a  whole  lessons  in  the 
concrete,  although  their  objects  are  social  life,  daily  experience, 
and  humanity  rather  than  Nature.  These  are,  however, 
"  nature  study "  in  as  genuine  a  sense  as  demonstrations  in 
natural  history  :  for  their  actuality  is  not  limited  to  human 
character,  but   extends   to   environment   and  setting.      Their 

'  Infra,  p.  226  :  the  Colloquy  upon  "A  serious  Entertainment." 


Reading  and  Writing  97 

intent  is  to  arouse  observation,  criticism  and  ethical  selection ; 
the  method  is  an  approach,  at  least,  to  direct  handling  of 
facts.  It  is  evident  in  this  connection  that,  although  Erasmus 
would  refuse  a  place  to  the  vernacular  in  the  school,  a 
working  acquaintance  with  the  mother  tongue  was  assumed 
as  the  means  of  acquiring  such  general  knowledge  of  common 
facts  as  is  here  indicated. 

Reading'  follows.  It  must  be  taught  early:  "Sonare 
primum  est,  proximum  legere."  That  is  the  order.  Letters 
are  taught  and  recognised :  this  by  the  method  of  the  biscuit 
letters  of  Horace,  or  by  ivory  tablets,  or  by  pictures ;  and 
there  was  a  game  of  Scaci  in  which  Greek  and  Latin  letters 
were  employed  in  a  sort  of  competition.  Letters  are  named, 
written  and  pronounced ;  then  syllables,  words  and  sentences. 
Reading  matter  must  be  intelligible  and  attractive,  though  we 
should  be  glad  to  know  the  type  of  book  contemplated. 
Nothing  very  attractive  has  come  down  to  us.  Probably 
extracts  were  written,  or  later  on  dictated,  for  temporary  use. 
Consecutive  reading  should  be  practised  on  some  author 
worth  studying.  The  Colloquies  of  Erasmus  were  the  most 
popular  "Reader"  of  the  i6th  and  17th  centuries. 

Writing,  in  turn,  is  of  later  introduction  than  reading.  In 
its  beginnings  it  is  a  form  of  drawing.  Handwriting,  says 
Erasmus,  like  one's  voice,  is  a  part  of  our  personality  and 
should  be  cultivated  accordingly.  This  is  not  exclusively  a 
mere  utility.  A  start  is  made  with  simplest  capitals  of  Roman, 
not  Gothic,  type.  The  best  examples  are  the  letters  to  be 
found  upon  the  coin  inscriptions  of  the  sestertii  of  the  early 
empire — a  very  remarkable  bit  of  true  artistic  perception  of 
Erasmus^.  He  describes  carefully  the  formation  of  letters  to 
be  followed  in  writing-copies.  Simpler  capitals  first,  then  the 
more  complex  ones,  lastly  groups  and  abbreviations.     Before 

^  Dialog.  De  Pronun.,  Op.  i.  929  A. 

^  Cp.  the  Dialog.  De  Pronun.,  Op.  i.  925,  6. 


98  Discipline 

the  age  of  seven  this  will  be  taught  by  a  teacher  of  sense 
"by  way  of  play."  The  Greek  and  Latin  alphabets  ought  if 
possible  to  be  learnt  side  by  side'.  Let  all  headlines  be 
sensible  and  useful.  Drawing  is  attractive  to  boys,  in  that 
every  child  is  delighted  to  express  in  this  way  what  he  has 
seen :  at  a  later  stage  it  will  be  found  helpful  to  add  manual 
dexterity  in  painting,  modelling  and  architecture  :  we  need  not 
fear  the  reproach  of  the  rigid  humanist,  "  for  we  cannot  forget 
that  our  Lord  was  not  only  the  son  of  a  craftsman,  but  was 
one  Himself^" 

§  7.     Discipline. 

Erasmus  has  two  charges  to  make  against  the  schoolmasters 
of  his  day :  they  are  ignorant  and  they  are  brutal.  He  con- 
nects the  two  by  proving  that  brutality  is  the  resource  of  the 
master  who  has  either  no  method  of  teaching  or  nothing  to 
teach  ^ 

The  insight  into  child  nature  which  Erasmus  displayed  was 
accompanied  by  a  definite  concept  of  the  conditions  of  right 
discipline,  which  he  properly  understood  as  including  both 
stimulus  and  restraint.  This  psychological  theory  implied  that 
the  growing  mind  is  by  nature  curious,  imitative  and  tenacious; 
and  that  it  is  by  nature  amenable  to  right  guidance.  Hence 
the  boy  may  be  counted  upon  to  obey  suitable  incentives. 
These  are  in  part  personal  to  the  teacher,  in  part  they  belong 
to  his  instruction. 

The  first  step  is  to  secure  the  respect  and  the  affection  of 
the  pupil  for  the  master,  an  affection  which  will  not  be  allowed 
to  degenerate  into  familiarity.  This  leads  to  the  second  stage  : 
the  affection  for  the  subject  taught.  But  this  will  not  be  main- 
tained unless  interest  is  aroused.     Now  interest  in  the  subject- 

^  Op.  V.  712c:  this  before  the  7th  year,  and  always  "  per  lusum." 

*  Op.  V.   716  B,  C. 

•  The  De  Pueris  should  be  read  in  illustration  of  this  section. 


Sanctions  of  Discipline  99 

matter  may  not  be  at  first  strong  enough  to  survive :  it  must  be 
nourished  by  associating  pleasure  with  the  actual  teaching 
process.  This  is  secured  by  wise  devices,  which  Erasmus 
describes  "  per  lusum  discere " ;  by  encouragement  of  am- 
bition ;  by  emulation ;  by  alternation  of  subjects,  and  intervals 
for  relaxation.  The  Colloquies  as  a  means  of  learning  Latin  in 
lieu  of  the  method  of  logical  grammar  are  a  standing  instance 
with  Erasmus.  Moreover  he  sees  that  clearness  in  exposition 
and  arrangement,  variety  of  illustration,  of  contrast  and  of 
parallel,  are  essential  factors  in  retaining  attention.  Exercises, 
for  instance,  in  speaking  Latin,  should  be  carefully  adapted  to 
the  boy's  own  interests,  his  play  and  social  life.  The  choice 
of  such  material  was,  no  doubt,  less  easy  than  it  appeared  to 
be  to  Erasmus.  He  had  himself  no  competing  interests 
outside  his  life  of  a  student ;  and  had  never  experienced  the 
sweeping  tide  of  physical  energy  with  its  imperious  demands 
for  bodily  activity  and  achievement.  He  admits  that  to  some 
boys  intellectual  pursuits  make  no  appeal,  and  for  those  he 
urges  a  wholly  different  training,  though  one  in  which  he  can 
take  little  concern. 

The  desire  of  fame  and  fear  of  dispraise  or  of  ridicule 
become  with  Erasmus  an  educational  motive.  These  indeed 
have  in  them  something  of  the  nature  of  instinct.  But  whilst 
backward  boys  may  be  thus  encouraged,  good  scholars  are  not 
to  be  over-praised.  For  though  despondency  is  to  be  avoided, 
conceit  and  contempt  for  others  are  not  less  objectionable. 

Strictly  in  harmony  with  this  view  of  the  forces  which  make 
for  interest  is  Erasmus'  position  respecting  punishments.  He 
contrasts  the  method  of  Christ  with  his  disciples  with  the 
habit  of  the  teacher  of  his  own  day.  Erasmus  draws  a 
repulsive  picture  of  the  customary  discipline  of  the  grammar 
school.  Petrarch  had  done  the  same  before  him  :  but  whilst 
he  had  stood  amazed  that  any  one  should  undertake  so  trying 
a  trade  as  that  of  school  teaching,  Erasmus  glorified  it  as 
amongst  the  highest  of  Christian  duties,  and  the  noblest  of 

7—2 


lOO  Corporal  Punishment  ' 

intellectual  careers.  For  he  did  not  admit  that  harsh  dis- 
cipline was  a  necessity.  If  there  are  boys  who  may  only  be 
controlled  by  flogging,  let  them  be  sent  away  from  school  as 
being  incapable  of  liberal  education,  and  find  industrial  occu- 
pation. In  reality  cruelty  was  in  those  days  a  common  vice, 
and  re-acted  inevitably  upon  school-life.  Parents — widowed 
mothers  in  particular— were  not  seldom  given  to  violence 
towards  their  children.  They  forget  that  offences  are  often 
due  to  mere  thoughtlessness  and  excusable  ignorance.  No 
woman  ought  to  be  allowed  to  strike  a  child ;  she  has  not  the 
self-control  required.  Harshness  drives  boys  to  enlist  or  to 
take  monastic  vows.  Girls  are  broken  in  spirit.  Corporal 
punishment  must  not  be  such  as  offends  self-respect  and 
modesty,  and  is  unsuited  for  any  but  moral  faults.  But  he 
roundly  declares  that  the  boy  who  is  not  influenced  by  the  fear 
of  God,  by  regard  for  his  parents,  by  shame,  by  conscience,  is 
not  likely  to  be  moulded  aright  by  mere  physical  pain.  The 
stories  which  he  relates  from  his  own  experience  in  the  tract 
£>e  Pueris '  are  very  significant ;  and  throw  into  strong  relief 
Erasmus'  enlightened  attitude  on  the  question.  There  is 
obvious  relation  between  that  attitude  and  his  optimistic  view 
of  human  nature,  just  as  the  mediaeval  and  Lutheran  con- 
viction of  depravity  might  suggest  a  sterner  need  for  repression. 
It  must  not  be  forgotten  moreover  that  Erasmus  had  never 
been  a  schoolmaster. 

^  Infra,  pp.  205 — 7. 


CHAPTER   V. 

THE    LIBERAL   STUDIES. 

§  I.     The  Teaching  of  Grammar. 

It  is  important  to  understand  the  attitude  of  Erasmus  to 
the  subject  of  Grammar  in  education.  It  need  not  be  said, 
perhaps,  that  by  "  Grammar"  is  meant  that  of  the  Latin  and 
Greek  languages,  and  not  of  German  or  Dutch.  We  shall  find 
that  Erasmus  holds  opinions  upon  this  branch  of  instruction 
which  alone  would  entitle  him  to  a  notable  place  in  the  history 
of  teaching. 

The  content  of  the  term  Grammar  has  varied  in  the  history 
of  scholarship.  To  Quintilian  it  implies  not  only  accidence 
and  syntax,  and  the  art  of  reading  aloud,  but  also  the  study  of 
the  poets,  historians,  philosophers  and  orators.  It  is  a  pursuit 
which  demands  the  highest  intelligence ;  it  corresponds  in  fact 
to  our  concept  of  the  study  of  Literature.  The  professional 
grammarians,  on  the  other  hand,  of  later  date,  Donatus,  Priscian, 
and  Servius,  mean  by  the  term  the  authoritative  accidence, 
syntax,  and  prosody  of  L,atin  and  Greek.  They  were  in  prin- 
ciple followed  by  the  mediaevalists  from  Isidore  down  to  the 
eleventh  century.  But  from  1150,  or  so,  onwards  we  trace  the 
rapid  intrusion  of  dialectic  into  the  province  of  grammar,  which 
ceased  to  be  the  formulation  of  usage  of  expression,  and 
became  concerned  with  the  laws  under  which  thought  was 
held. 


I02  The  Liberal  Studies 

This  tendency  became  more  pronounced  as  the  reign  of 
dialectic  throughout  all  branches  of  knowledge  was  gradually 
established.  Whilst  in  Italy  the  humanists  were  busily  en- 
gaged in  restoring  the  antique  conception  of  grammar,  in  the 
north  of  France,  in  England  and  in  Germany,  it  had  sunk  into 
complete  subjection  to  logic.  The  following  is  a  definition  of 
the  function  of  the  Pronoun  from  a  grammar  for  beginners 
printed  in  1499.  "  Pronomen . . .  significat  substantiam  seu 
entitatem  sub  modo  conceptus  intrinseco  permanentis  seu 
habitus  et  quietis  sub  determinate  apprehensionis  formali- 
tate'."  Or  we  may  illustrate  the  mediaevalist  idea  from  the 
discussions  upon  the  Absolute  case.  It  was  not  enough  for 
the  scholar  to  know  that  Latin  usage  constructed  this  in  the 
ablative  :  the  special  "  ablativity  "  of  the  "  absolute  "  concept* 
was  really  what  interested  the  grammarian.  In  the  same  way  the 
usages  of  the  participle,  of  the  genitive  of  possession,  of  the 
passive  voice,  were  of  far  less  concern  than  their  modi  sigiii- 
ficandi  or  underlying  dialectic  conceptions.  Hence  came  the 
endless  gloss  and  comment  which,  like  those  of  Petrus  Helias, 
overlay  the  texts  of  Priscian  and  Donatus,  and  which  became 
the  substitute  for  grammatical  treatises  outside  the  circles  of 
humanism  in  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries.  The  same 
confusion  is  witnessed  in  the  Dictionaries,  where  etymologies 
and  explanations  of  words  pass  very  often  into  a  dialectical  or 
ethical  region.  Papias,  for  instance,  the  chief  of  the  vocabu- 
larists,  gives  under  Ho7?w  definitions  of  Man,  in  logical  shape 
and  completeness,  instead  of  a  description  or  synonym  :  under 
Aetas  we  find  religious  admonitions.  Elsewhere  pronomen  is 
thus  explained :  homo  est  tuum  nomen,  peccator  est  tuum 
pronomen.  In  fact  no  grammarian  could  resist  the  temptation 
to  digression  and  homily.  For  the  true  limits  of  grammar  had 
been  lost  to  sight.     It  had  lost  its  objective  character  as  the 

^  Thurot,  Extraits,  p.   490.     This  is  taken  from  a  printed  grammar 
dated  1499. 

*  Cp.  Thurot,  I.e.,  pp.  311  seqq. 


The  Teaching  of  Grammar  103 


formulation  of  inflection  and  construction  as  determined  by 
right  choice  of  authorities ^  It  had  abandoned  its  independent 
status,  and  having  become  a  function  of  logic  shared  the 
futilities  of  the  current  word-spinning  of  the  day*.  Its  relation 
to  style  and  to  literary  interpretation  was  understood  in  Italy 
alone.  Humanists  were  undoubtedly  right  in  ascribing  to  the 
dialectic  method  of  handling  grammar  the  stagnation  of  Latin 
learning  which  marked  the  later  Middle  Age^ 

^  There  was  always  a  current  of  opposition  to  the  prevalent  confusion 
of  grammar  and  dialectic  during  the  middle  age.  But  the  scholars  who 
urged  the  authority  of  classical  writers  were  very  few,  and  the  Universities 
were  against  them.  Chartres  and  Tours  held  out  against  the  dominant 
influence  of  Paris ;  but  the  point  is  that  they  could  not  influence  educational 
opinion.  Cp.  Clerval,  Scales  de  Chartres,  p.  230;  Sandys,  Classical 
Scholarship,  p.   516. 

-  The  following  is  from  Helias:  "  Consideremus  Vergilium  vivere 
bonum  est :  f^r^zYzMw  accusativus  t'«'z'<^^  infinitivo  regitur.  Quare?  Quo- 
niana  infinitivus  accusativum  regit  ex  vi  infinitivi. "  Thurot,  Not.  et  Extraits, 
p.  245.  This,  a  very  common  type,  shows  to  what  dialectical  grammar 
could  sink.  The  mediaeval  position  is  clearly  stated.  I.e.  p.  102:  "cum 
Priscianus  non  docuerit  grammaticam  per  omnem  modum  sciendi  possi- 
bilem,  in  eo  sua  doctrina  est  valde  diminuta.  Unde  constructiones  multas 
dicit,  quarum  tamen  causas  non  assignat,  sed  solum  eas  declaral  per  auctori- 
tates  antiquortim  gramma(tcorum.  Propter  quod  non  docet,  quia  illi  tantum 
docent  qui  causas  suorum  dictorum  assignant." 

^  Cp.  Eras.  Oj>.  i.  892,  iii.  pp.  3,  68,  930.  Infra,  p.  221.  The  mediaeval 
grammarians,  against  whom  Erasmus  specially  protests,  are  these :  Johannes 
de  Garland ia,  an  Englishman  who  resided  chiefly  in  France  (circ.  1230). 
His  Synonima  and  Vocabuloruin  aequivocorum  interpretatio  were  very 
much  used :  one  or  other  of  these  is  referred  to  by  Erasmus  as  used  by 
him  at  school :  supra,  p.  3.  Both  were  sufficiently  in  demand  to  be 
printed  by  W.  de  Worde  (1499,  1500),  and  later  by  Pynson.  They  are 
both  in  metre.  Michael  de  Marbais,  known  as  Modista  from  his  book  de 
modis  sigtiijicandi  (circ.  1220).  Ebrardus  (circ.  12 12),  known  as  Graecista 
from  his  metrical  work  on  grammar,  which  contains  some  speculative 
etymologies  from  the  Greek.  Ludolphus,  called  Florista  from  his  metrical 
syntax,  much  used  in  the  Netherlands.  Papias  (circ.  1050)  and  Hugutio 
(circ.  1 200)  produced  dictionaries  which  sorely  offended  by  reason  of  their 
indifference  to  classical  authority  and   to  classical  quotation.     The  most 


I04  The  Liberal  Studies 

The  revolt  against  the  mediaevalist  grammarian,  begun  by 
Petrarch,  found  its  distinguished  champion  in  Lorenzo  Valla 
(14 15 — 1465).  Himself  a  scholar  of  the  first  rank  in  his  day 
he  waged  relentless  war  against  the  depravers  of  Latin.  His 
cardinal  principle  was  the  exact  opposite  to  theirs.  "  Ego  pro 
lege  accipio  quidquid  magnis  auctoribus  placuit'."  To  him 
language  was  a  body  of  phenomena  whose  laws  were  ascertain- 
able from  the  study  of  the  given  facts,  and  were,  once  arrived 
at,  available  for  use  in  speech  and  in  interpretation.  All 
a  priori,  subjective,  or  allegorical  intrusions  into  this  region  of 
plain  authoritative  usage  were  to  be  rigorously  barred  out.  All 
humanist  scholars  followed  Valla.  The  first  systematic  Latin 
grammar  upon  the  new  method  was  that  of  N.  Perotti,  a  pupil 
of  Vittorino  da  Feltre,  which  was  printed  in  1473. 

The  position  affirmed  by  scholars  was  in  reality  the  precursor 
of  the  Baconian  doctrine,  applied  thus  early  to  one  special 
department  of  Nature,  viz.,  organised  speech.  In  their  respect 
for  actual  facts,  and  their  aversion  to  dialectic  speculation,  a 
profound  spiritual  kinship  links  the  great  minds  of  the  Revival, 
such  as  Valla  and  Erasmus,  with  that  of  the  famous  elaborator 
of  method. 

popular  of  all  grammarians  at  the  beginning  of  the  Revival  was  Alexander  de 
Villa  Dei  (circ.  1200),  whose  hexameter  poem  (ed.  Reichling,  1893)  treating 
of  accidence,  syntax  and  prosody,  was  regarded  less  unfavourably  by  human- 
ists, and  was  edited  by  Sintheim  of  Deventer  (supra,  p.  3).  It  rested  upon 
Donatus  and  Priscian;  though  the  glosses  added  by  later  commentators 
were  of  the  usual  dialectic  sort.  The  best  of  the  Dictionaries  was  the 
Vocabularius  Breviloquus,  often  ascribed  to  Guarino,  or  to  Reuchlin ;  both 
wrongly.  It  grew  from  an  anonymous  production  which  saw  the  light  at 
Basel  about  1400;  but  its  inclusion  of  much  theological  and  legal  terminology 
shows  that  it  was  not  a  scholar's  handbook  but  one  for  professional  use. 
In  the  form  of  the  Strassburg  edition  of  1491  it  was  probably  the  commonest 
dictionary  of  Erasmus'  day.  A  review  of  the  relation  of  the  DoctrinaU 
of  Alexander  de  Villa  Dei  to  earlier  humanist  grammars  is  given  by  Sabba- 
dini,  La  Sctiola  e  gli  studt  di  Guarino,  pp.  38  seqq.  In  its  treatment  of 
irregular  inflections  and  of  syntax  it  was  held  to  be  sound. 
^  Valla,  Eleg.  Ling.  Lai.  iii.  17. 


The  Teaching  of  Grammar  105 

The  reverence  which  Erasmus  entertained  for  Valla's 
scholarship  has  been  already  noticed.  He  shared  his  view 
of  the  function  of  grammar  as  generalised  usage,  in  inflection 
and  in  construction,  formulated  as  a  guide  in  interpretation 
and  composition.  It  is  true  that,  like  nearly  all  humanists, 
Erasmus  occasionally  extends  the  term  to  cover  the  study 
of  Literature,  in  imitation  of  Quintilian.  But  as  a  rule  he 
limits  the  use  of  the  word  "Grammatica"  to  accidence,  syntax, 
and  prosody,  as  does  Sadoleto  in  his  tract  on  Education, 
and  our  own  Sir  Thomas  Elyot':  "grammar  being  but  the 
introduction  to  the  understanding  of  authors." 

The  view  of  grammatical  method  held  by  Erasmus  is 
instructive.  Its  philosophical  basis  is  never  very  clearly  ex- 
hibited, for  it  is  characteristic  of  him  to  work  intuitively  towards 
right  methods  whose  psychological  validity  he  had  no  means 
of  proving.  But  it  is  obvious  that,  however  unconsciously,  he 
accepted  those  principles  of  language-teaching  which  have  been 
regarded  as  a  peculiar  discovery  of  our  own  day.  We  must 
remember  that  Latin  was  understood  by  Erasmus,  and  was  to 
be  taught,  as  a  living  language  in  the  sense  that  French  and 
German  are  "living"  languages  in  a  modern  school-course. 

We  can  distinguish  three  stages  of  grammatical  instruction, 
each  of  which  has  its  phase  of  natural  acquisition,  of 
generalisation  or  systematic  grammar,  and  of  practice,  whereby 
the  pupil  fixes  and  applies  rules  formally  learnt.  The  earliest 
stage  is  that  already  touched  upon^.  The  first  steps  are  taken 
by  way  of  naming,  conversation  and  description  :  these  steps 
are  accomplished  in  the  home,  if  possible  in  the  nursery,  where 
as  we  know  Montaigne  learnt  to  speak  Latin  and  that  only. 
It  is  to  secure  this  natural  method  that  Erasmus  is  so  insistent 
on  the  choice  of  attendants  and  companions,  and  on  the 
engagement  of  a  learned  tutor.     For  the  same  reason  Erasmus 

^  Sadoleto,  Op.  iii.  105.     Elyot,  Governour,  i.  -^o- 
^  Supra,  pp.  90,  96. 


io6  The  Liberal  Studies 

debars  the  use  of  folk-lore  and  national  stories.  Parents  and 
friends  of  the  child  should  keep  up  their  conversational  Latin 
and  read  aloud  in  the  language  to  further  this  introductory 
stage'.  When  the  child  can  understand  and  take  part  in  such 
conversation  he  should  be  taught  the  first  rudiments  of  gram- 
mar. This  is  confined  carefully  to  the  regular  forms  of  Noun 
and  Verb  which  are  detached  and  learnt  by  heart.  These  in 
turn  are  to  be  brought  into  exercise  and  applied  by  further 
conversation,  so  that  they  may  become  thoroughly  familiar. 

At  the  second  stage,  that  of  earliest  school  instruction, 
which  corresponds  to  the  seventh  year  of  age,  the  boy  will 
make  the  practice  thus  gained  the  basis  of  a  more  systematic 
study  of  grammar.  He  will  now  have  the  advantage  of  more 
extended  power  of  conversation  and  of  simple  reading  such  as 
we  find  in  some  of  the  easier  Colloquies,  in  tales  from  Aesop, 
and  especially  in  such  carefully  devised  aids  to  naming  and 
description'  as  are  set  out  in  the  Colloquy  Convivium  Reli- 
giosum*.  Here  a  garden  laid  out  with  terraces  and  shaded 
walks  is  furnished  with  specimens  of  all  common  plants,  and 
with  an  aviary ;  each  object  is  accurately  named,  and  mottoes 
are  added.  The  walls  bear  frescoes  of  strange  animals  and 
trees,  also  appropriately  named.  The  head  of  the  house  con- 
verses about  all  these  and  calls  attention  to  their  characteristics. 
It  is  at  once  instruction  in  natural  objects  and  in  language. 
Thus  a  vocabulary  is  formed  without  books,  the  Latin  name 
is  derived  directly  from  the  object,  not  by  translation  from  a 
vernacular  word.  So  epithets,  verbs,  adverbs,  are  acquired  in 
the  same  way.  Thus  a  store  of  words  and  of  rudimentary 
sentence-forms  is  accumulated,  and  Latin  is  associated  with 
common  life.  Such  preparation  leads  in  appropriate  sequence 
to  further  grammatical  acquisition.      But  at  this   stage   also 

^  Eras.  Op.  i.  509  K :  and  infra,  p.  212;  this  section  of  the  De  Pueris 
refers  wholly  to  the  first  stage  of  teaching  language. 

-  The  Colloquies  in  Bailey's  translation,  i.  21 — 120  (Op.  i.  630 — 672), 
esp.  Bailey,  i.  156  {Of.  i.  672),  are  excellent  examples  for  reference. 


The   Teaching  of  Grammar  107 

systematic  grammar  is  strictly  limited  in  amount.  Such  por- 
tions only  of  accidence  and  syntax  are  to  be  learnt  as  are 
needed  for  use  in  easy  reading  and  composition.  There  is  as 
yet  no  thought  of  a  complete  grammar  to  be  taught  in  its 
logical  order.  The  treatment  is  determined  by  the  pupil's 
needs  and  power  of  assimilation,  not  by  the  requirements  of 
the  subject  regarded  as  an  organised  whole.  Hence  the  Master 
will  be  most  careful  in  his  choice  of  material,  which  must  be 
stated  in  the  simplest  fashion  and  illustrated  by  intelligible  and 
attractive  quotations.  Unusual  and  anomalous  forms  are,  so 
far  as  may  be,  ignored ;  and  no  word  out  of  ordinary  use  may 
be  included.  Such  a  text-book  serves  as  verification  and  as 
clear  definition  of  usages  already  partly  perceived  from  reading 
and  conversation.  For  the  standing  principle  is  always  :  from 
reading  to  perception  of  usage,  from  usage  to  authoritative 
rule.  The  mediaevalist  had  completely  inverted  the  order; 
and  the  i8th  century  revived  the  same  inversion. 

In  the  De  Constructione^  Erasmus  has  left  us  his  idea  of 
a  Syntax  for  boys  at  this  second  stage  of  Latin  instruction. 
It  was  originally  drafted  by  W.  Lily,  and  was  at  his  request 
revised  by  Erasmus  for  the  use  of  St  Paul's  School.  The 
selection  and  order  of  the  material  is  interesting :  the  contents 
are  as  follows  : 

1.  The  cases  required  by  different  classes  of  verbs. 

2.  The  simple  uses  of  the  Infinitive,  Supine,  Gerund 

and  Participle. 

3.  Certain  common  case  constructions  other  than  those 

with  the  Verb. 

^  Libellus  de  octo  orationis  partium  constructioiie,  corredus  ab  Erasmo, 
cum  praefat.J.  Coleti.  Basil.  Aug.  1515.  Upon  the  history  of  this  grammar 
see  Lupton  in  Notes  and  Queries,  Series  vi,  vol.  11.  pp.  441^ — 2,  461 — 2. 
In  the  form  which  it  had  assumed  by  1540  Lily's  Gratnmar,  as  revised 
by  Erasmus,  was  by  royal  proclamation  "  authorised "  for  exclusive  use 
in  Grammar  Schools.  See  Foster  Watson,  Curriculum  atid  Text-hooks, 
p.  28. 


io8  The  Liberal  Studies 

4.  The  concords  of  noun  and  adjective :  relative  and 

antecedent. 

5.  The  construction  of  degrees  of  comparison,  and  of 

certain  groups  of  adjectives   and   numerals   with 
case. 

6.  Certain   constructions   of    Dative,    Accusative    and 

Ablative  with  noun  and  adjective. 

7.  The  adverb  in  construction  with  a  noun. 

8.  Conjunctions  and  Interjections. 

9.  Prepositions  and  their  cases. 

The  whole  occupies  about  25  pages  of  the  size  of  the 
present  volume.  Its  gradual  development  into  the  Eton  Latin 
Grammar  is  a  curious  proof  of  the  remarkable  survivals  which 
characterise  school  books. 

The  criticism  has  often  been  made  that  in  this  outline 
Erasmus  shows  himself  arbitrary  and  illogical  in  arrangement. 
But  the  answer  is  that  his  method  is  the  express  antithesis  to  a 
systematic  teaching  of  grammar.  For  he  handles  the  subject 
in  the  order  and  with  just  so  much  complexity  as  are  adapted 
to  the  learner  beginning  to  construe ;  to  the  end  that  he  may 
find  his  accumulating  knowledge  of  language — empirically 
arrived  at — best  codified.  Grammar  follows  speech.  It  is 
by  conversation  and  by  reading  that  a  boy  must  hope  to 
acquire  the  laws  of  expression,  not  by  learning  grammar'. 
Elyot,  who  in  so  many  ways  interpreted  Erasmus  to  England, 
in  the  true  spirit  of  his  master,  "  would  advise  not  to  detain 
the  child  too  long  in  that  tedious  labour  "  of  grammar,  which 
if  "made  too  long  or  too  exquisite  to  the  learner,  it  in  a  manner 
mortifieth  his  courage.... The  spark  of  the  fervent  desire  of 
learning  is  extinct  with  the  burden  of  grammar-." 

Memory  work  is  thus  reduced  to  small  limits,  but  within 

^  De  Rat.  Stud.  521  C:  infra,  p.   164.  For  an  example  of  inductive 

treatment  of  a  construction  cp.  Eras.  Op.  \.  667  D — 668  D :  the  instance 
chosen  is  "constat." 

*  Elyot,  Goveniotir,  I.e. 


The  Teaching  of  Grammar  109 

these  it  must  be  exact.  Its  place  is  taken  by  practice.  Herein 
lies  the  value  of  the  Colloquies,  which  were  devised  originally 
to  aid  conversation  by  bringing  daily  life  and  school  topics 
within  the  circle  of  Latin  instruction.  The  method  long  sur- 
vived, as  we  know  from  such  text-books  as  the  Dialogues  of 
Mathurin  Cordier'  and  the  \a.ttr  /anua  of  the  Jesuits  and  of 
Comenius. 

Two  defects  in  the  current  grammars  of  mediaeval  origin 
were  specially  noted  by  Erasmus.  The  first  was  that  the  rules 
were  never  illustrated  by  quotations  from  classical  authors. 
The  Erasmian  method  made  this  essential.  He  further  urges 
that  such  examples  should  be  in  themselves  likely  to  interest 
children,  should  be  of  moral  worth,  or  of  poetic  charm.  The 
second  was  that  the  mediaeval  teacher  did  nothing  for  vocabu- 
lary. Young  men  grew  up  under  such  a  master,  and  after 
years  of  his  instruction  knew  nothing  of  names  of  common 
animals,  plants,  geographical  facts,  or  objects  of  daily  life. 
Hence  Latin  meant  nothing  to  them  as  a  practical  aptitude^ 
But  to  Erasmus  Latin  was  either  a  working  tool  for  life  or 
nothing. 

The  l/iird,  or  higher,  stage  of  Latin  study  required,  how- 
ever, a  much  more  thorough  mastery  of  grammar.  It  is  now 
systematic — "per  locos  et  ordines."  Practice  upon  the  basis 
of  the  previous  stage  is  extended.  But  text-books  such  as 
Valla's  Elegantiae  and  Perotti's  Rudimenta  are  to  be  in  the 
pupil's  hands.  Reading  will  still  have  for  one  of  its  ends  the 
verification  and  amplification  of  rules  :  and  care  will  always  be 
taken  to  remember  that  grammar  is  never  an  end  in  itself. 

1  M.  Cordier,  a  famous  school-master  in  Paris  and  Geneva.  Calvin 
w^as  a  pupil  of  his.  His  Colloquies  was  a  popular  school  hook  in  the  second 
half  of  the  17th  century,  and  was  edited  by  C.  Hoole  in  1657  fo""  English 
pupils. 

^  The  first  part  of  the  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  162,  should  be  read  in 
conjunction  with  this  passage. 

3  De  Eat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  169,  §  6. 


no  .         The  Liberal  Studies 


The  principle  applies  to  Greek  as  well  as  to  Latin.  Gaza's 
grammar,  which  Erasmus  edited,  he  quotes  as  an  example 
of  a  sound  systematic  treatment.  Lascaris,  Urbanus,  and 
Chalcondylas  are  also  available.  The  parallel  study  of  the 
two  languages  is  strongly  advised  ;  and  Erasmus  is  not  blind 
to  the  use  which  can  be  made  of  Romance  languages  and 
modern  Greek  on  the  comparative  method  ^  The  former 
device  is  common  to  most  humanist  masters,  the  latter  is  quite 
unusual. 

It  is  evident  that  in  laying  down  this  enlightened  method 
of  teaching  language  Erasmus  relies  upon  two  conditions. 
The  first  is,  that  from  the  beginning  the  learner  is  reared  in  a 
home  in  which  Latin  is  a  standing  factor  of  daily  intercourse : 
the  second,  that  the  master  is  not  only  a  scholar  of  wide 
reading,  but  a  teacher  of  insight,  and  of  special  capacity  for 
evoking  interest.  It  is  not  easy  for  us  to-day  to  judge  of  the 
success  of  such  a  method'  owing  to  our  unfamiliarity  with 
Latin  as  a  living  language.  But  if  we  substitute  French  for 
Latin,  we  can  perceive  the  psychological  soundness,  of  its 
principle.  The  progress  is  from  (a)  practice,  whereby  eye  and 
ear  are  early  accustomed  to  word  and  sentence,  through  {b) 
systematisation  by  which  phenomena  of  usage  are  reduced  to 
rule  and  paradigm,  to  {c)  application  of  such  formulae  to 
extended  and  more  certain  practice  :  this,  in  turn,  forming  the 
starting-point  for  what  becomes  ultimately  the  stage  of 
logically  complete  grammar,  which  serves  as  the  standard 
authority  in  composition  and  in  reading. 

One  word  may  be  said  upon  the  attitude  which  Erasmus 

^  De  Kat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  167,  §  5.  Upon  the  parallel  teaching  of  Greek 
and  Latin  Erasmus  is  not  very  definite.  He  implies  distinctly  that  at  the  age 
of  five  Greek  and  Latin  letters  may  be  learnt,  Op.  v.  712  c.  The  first  steps 
in  grammar  should  be  taken  in  both  tongues,  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  163, 
§  2.  But  it  is  obvious  that  the  conversational  method  was  impossible,  so 
that  the  general  lines  of  teaching  Greek  must  have  been  conceived  mainly 
on  grammatical  lines.  At  Cambridge  Erasmus  began  with  the  Erotemata 
of  Chrysoloras. 


The  Choice  of  Authors  1 1 1 

adopted  towards  the  mediaevalist.  He  is,  no  doubt,  entirely 
in  the  right  in  basing  grammar  for  beginners  upon  usage  alone. 
None  the  less  the  learner  gains  something  from  the  habit 
of  seeking  in  self-analysis  the  underlying  principles  of  all 
syntax.  Our  method  of  grammatical  analysis  rests  upon  such 
practice.  Usage  in  language,  though  in  a  true  sense  objective 
and  authoritative,  is  by  no  means  an  arbitrary  phenomenon. 
In  another  sense,  not  less  true,  speech  takes  its  usage  from 
thought.  The  mediaevalist,  passionately  anxious  to  "  explain  " 
the  universe,  was  not  illogical  in  including  human  speech 
among  its  factors,  and  he  was  right  in  seeking  his  clues  in  the 
laws  of  thought'.  None  the  less  Erasmus,  as  a  teacher,  was 
justified  in  his  contention  that  speculation  about  facts  is  by  no 
means  identical  with  a  wide  and  a  firm  grasp  of  such  facts  ; 
and  that  for  the  purpose  of  literature  and  of  practical  life  it  is 
only  the  latter  that  is  of  importance. 

§  2.     The  Choice  of  Authors  in  General. 

The  principal  contribution  of  Erasmus  is  contained  in  the 
De  Ratione  Shuiii,  which  must  be  consulted  throughout  this 
and  the  following  sections.  His  criticisms  of  authors  from  the 
standpoint  of  education  is  less  suggestive  than  those  recorded 
by  the  Italian  humanists"^.  In  the  main  he  reproduces 
Quintilian's  choice  of  writers ^ 

The  earliest  books  to  be  attempted  will  be  the  Proverbs 
and  the  Gospels  in  the  Vulgate.  These  should  be  supple- 
mented by  portions  (in  Latin)  of  Plutarch's  Apophthepnata  and 
Moralia,  "  quibus  nihil  sanctius  inveniri  potest."  To  these  he 
adds  Seneca  '*  qui  lectoris  animum  a  sordidis  curis  in  sublime 

^  On  mediaeval  scholarship  generally,  and  in  particular  upon  the  eve 
of  the  Revival,  Dr  Sandys'  History  of  Classical  Scholarship  must  be  in 
future  carefully  consulted. 

-  Cp.  Woodward,  Vittoritto,  p.  ^\^. 

^  Quintilian,  Instil.  Oral.  x.  i. 


1 1 2  The  Liberal  Studies 

subvehit'."  The  foundations  of  moral  teaching  as  well  as 
practice  in  Latin  are  hereby  secured,  and  specially  is  this  of 
importance  in  the  training  of  a  prince.  Aesop  may  profitably 
be  chosen  as  the  first  Greek  author.  The  immense  range  of 
school  editions  of  the  Fables,  often  illustrated,  dating  from  the 
middle  of  the  i6th  century,  proves  how  widely  this  advice  was 
accepted.  Erasmus  indicates  from  the  outset  that  he  has 
regard  to  interest  and  edification  in  his  method  of  language- 
teaching. 

The  general  list  of  writers  named  by  Erasmus  for  school 
use  is  the  following.  In  Greek,  Lucian,  Demosthenes, 
Herodotus ;  Aristophanes,  Homer,  and  Euripides.  In  Latin, 
Terence  and  Plautus,  Vergil,  Horace;  Cicero,  Caesar,  Sallust. 
Quintilian  gives  less  prominence  to  Lucian  and  Sallust  than 
does  Erasmus.  The  note  of  this  selection  is  the  value  of  the 
writers  as  aids  to  the  formation  of  the  conversational  and 
rhetorical  styles.  It  is  important  to  remember  how  intimately 
Erasmus  knits  together  reading  and  composition  both  in 
respect  of  form  and  of  matter.  Lucian's  Dialogues  had,  as  we 
have  seen,  peculiar  attraction  for  Erasmus,  who  learnt  Greek 
through  them.  In  the  parallel  acquisition  of  Greek  and  Latin 
Terence  took  place  side  by  side  with  I>ucian^.  Both  serve  as 
models  for  conversational  style,  and  present  ancient  speech  in 
living  form.  Regarding  Terence  it  is  well  known  how  highly 
he  was  esteemed  by  all  humanists :  the  German  protestant 
scholars  not  less  than  the  Italian  masters  gave  him  the  chief 
place  among  junior  texts.     The  taste,  wit  and  grace  displayed 

^  Instit.  Princip.  Chr.,  in  Op.  iv.  587  :  in  Op.  ix.  92  B  Erasmus  brackets 
together  Cicero,  Quintilian  and  Seneca  as  authors  wholly  blameless  in  the 
eyes  of  the  most  strict  Christian  educators :  he  speaks  thus  of  these  three 
authors,  "qui  non  solum  absunt  ab  obscenitate  verum  etiaro  saluberrimis 
praeceptis  vitam  instiluunt." 

^  "  Graecitatem  ex  Luciano  discendam  ":  ix.  92  B.  He  has  an  elaborate 
defence  of  his  suitability  for  this  purpose.  On  Terence,  Sabbadini,  Guarinot 
p.  147. 


Choice  of  A  uthors  113 

in  the  Comedies,  the  purity  of  their  diction,  make  them  so 
helpful  to  the  young  scholar  that  he  should  be  called  upon  to 
learn  whole  scenes  by  heart.  Further,  they  are  "  interesting  "  : 
and  only  a  mind  already  evil  will  take  harm  from  their  reading. 
Guarino  considered  Terence  a  profound  teacher  of  morals. 
In  the  same  way,  Erasmus  commends  his  Comedies  as  a 
reflection  of  the  morals  and  habits  of  his  age,  as  a  picture 
which  "  in  right  hands  not  only  does  no  harm  to  morality  but 
is  of  immense  service  in  improving  it'."  He  admits  that  the 
power  of  drawing  out  moral  lessons  from  plot  and  character 
varies  with  every  teacher.  Quintilian,  Jerome,  Augustine,  and 
Ambrose  studied  Terence  in  their  youth  and  enjoyed  him  in 
manhood.  In  short,  only  barbarians  fail  to  appreciate  him. 
Perhaps  the  best  critical  work  done  by  Erasmus  in  I^atin 
scholarship  was  his  edition  of  Terence.  Plautus  was  less 
favourably  viewed  for  school  purposes  on  moral  grounds,  and 
selections  only  can  be  admitted^. 

We  may  be  surprised  at  the  place  given  to  Aristophanes, 
considering  the  demand  which  his  plays  make  for  a  knowledge 
of  Athenian  life  and  politics  possessed  by  no  scholar  of  the 
century  of  Erasmus.  But  he  brings  the  student  face  to  face 
with  living  figures  and  colloquial  speech.  Demosthenes  is 
there  for  his  eloquence,  and  Herodotus,  perhaps,  as  being 
attractive  in  matter  and  of  utility  for  his  moral  instances.  The 
inclusion  of  Homer  needs  no  explanation.  Euripides  closes 
the  list.  Next  to  Lucian  he  was  Erasmus'  first  choice  when  he 
himself  was  learning  Greek.  He  then  found  the  choruses 
lacking  in  true  feeling  ;  and  would  like  to  have  re-written  them 
in  a  worthier  fashion  ^  But  Erasmus,  like  most  humanists, 
has  nothing  of  the  poet  in  his  composition. 

Amongst  Latins,  Caesar  and  Sallust,  to  whom  Livy  and 
Tacitus^  are  elsewhere  added,  have  as  historians  special  claims. 

^  Eras.  Op.  iii.  1457  E  and  1886  D,  E. 

"  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  163,  §  3.  ^  Supra,  p.  38. 

*  Eras.  Op.  iii.  971  D.     Infra,  p.  128,  on  teaching  of  history. 

w.  8 


114  The  Liberal  Studies 

Cicero  attracted  every  humanist  on  the  three  sides  of  orator, 
letter-writer  and  moralist.  Vergil  is,  in  virtue  of  his  elabor- 
ation, chief  of  all  poets,  Horace  ranks  next.  Erasmus  says  of 
these :  "  when  I  read  this  I  can  scarcely  refrain  my  petition, 
'Holy  Socrates,  pray  for  us.'  Similarly  I  can  hardly  restrain 
myself  from  wishing  happiness  and  salvation  to  the  holy  soul 
of  Maro  and  Flaccus."  As  Raumer  says,  there  is  room  for 
surprise  at  this  sentiment'. 

It  is  noticeable  that  Erasmus  will  have  nothing  to  do  with 
Latin  versions  of  Romances^.  It  is  more  worthy  of  attention 
that  he  rules  out  even  of  the  higher  stage  of  education 
Christian  writers,  in  prose  or  verse,  and  the  great  Greek 
philosophers.  He  laid  down  two  canons  on  this  head  :  (i)  all 
writings  that  demand  theological  knowledge ^  (2)  all  writings 
involving  the  young  learner  in  abstract  speculation*,  are 
unsuited  to  education.  Thus  he  differs  from  most  early 
humanist  masters,  and  from  Wimpheling,  Nausea,  Vives,  and 
Colet  in  excluding  such  writers  as  Lactantius  or  Cyprian*:  and 
the  poets  Juvencus  or  Prudentius.  Elyot,  also,  otherwise  his 
disciple,  is  anxious  to  turn  boys  of  17  on  to  the  Ethics'^, 
and  Sadoleto  has  the  deepest  respect  for  Aristotle  and  Plato  ^ 
as  instruments  of  teaching  youth.  Erasmus,  however,  takes 
his  own  line.  Sertno  Latirius  being  the  aim,  the  best  only 
should  be  studied";  as  to  content,   the  ancient  world  in  its 

^  Raumer,  Gesch.  der  Piid.  i.  79  n. 

'^  Eras.  Op.  iv.  587  "  fabulae  stultae  et  aniles":  he  expressly  mentions 
"Arthurs  and  Lancelots."  The  judgment  of  Montaigne  is  as  severe.  Ess. 
i.  25. 

^  Eras.  Op.  ix.  93  c.  Prudentius  can  only  be  understood  by  a  theological 
scholar;  and  "  who  would  dream  of  forming  anyone's  style  on  Juvencus?" 

*  Id.  i,  522  B. 
''  Id.  ix.  93  c. 

^  Elyot,  Governour,  i.  91.  When  a  boy  has  reached  the  age  of  17, 
"  to  the  intent  his  courage  be  bridled  with  reason  "  he  must  study  Aristotle's 
Ethics  i.  and  ii.     These  would  be  followed  by  Plato. 

^  Sadoleto,  De  Instit.  liber..  Op.  iii.  1 25. 

*  Supra,  p.  47. 


The  Method  of  Reading  an  Author      115 

classic    perfection    can    afford    moral    instruction   of    wholly 
adequate  type. 

Such  a  range  of  reading  Erasmus  regards  as  sufficient  for 
the  ordinary  student  who  is  to  prepare  for  a  professional  life. 
But  those  who  pursue  the  classical  course  in  order  to  qualify 
themselves  as  masters  must  pursue  a  far  wider  range.  Upon 
this  he  lays  down  a  comprehensive  programme  in  the  De 
Ratione  Studii  (§  5).  Now  he  has  no  scruple  as  to  the  moral 
problem,  nor  does  he  exclude  Christian  writers,  nor  philoso- 
phers. But  he  is,  even  here,  averse  from  a  study  of  Renaissance 
Latinists,  as  substitutes  for  the  great  writers  of  antiquity  : 
although  he  makes  one  exception  in  admitting  Poliziano  as  a 
valuable  model  for  the  Epistolary  style.  In  this  exclusiveness 
he  differed  from  most  of  his  contemporaries'. 


§  3.     Method  of  Reading  an  Author. 

This  may  be  considered  under  three  divisions  :  aim,  pro- 
cedure, devices. 

In  the  first  place  it  is  necessary  to  disentangle  the  various 
aifiis  with  which  a  given  author  may  be  read  with  a  class. 
The  master  will  always  use  his  author  for  the  purpose  of 
verifying  and  amplifying  grammatical  rule.  Accidence,  syntax 
and  prosody  will  be  constantly  illustrated  and  practised  through 
this  medium.  Next,  vocabulary,  the  range  of  sentence-forms, 
of  figures  and  metaphors,  of  similes,  and  enrichment  generally, 
—  the  rhetorical  aptitudes  —  are  strengthened  by  properly 
directed  construing ;  and  this  accumulation  of  actual  material 
for  composition  is  one  of  the  main  ends  of  school  reading.  In 
the   third  place,    style  in  the  finer  sense,   the  adaptation  of 

^  Nausea,  De  puei-.  lit.  inst.,  pp.  24,  27;  Vives,  De  Trad.  Discip.,  iii. 
313,  318.  Wimpheling  at  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century  included  Petrarch, 
L.  Bruni,  and  Filelfo  amongst  prose  Latinists  to  be  read  in  schools :  also 
Baptista  Mantuanus,  the  poet.     Cp.  Paulsen,  p.  37. 

8—2 


ii6  The  Liberal  Studies 

expression  to  theme,  is  acquired  by  reading  and  by  reading 
only.  The  learner  perceives  through  Cicero  or  Demosthenes 
the  spirit  of  oratory;  in  Vergil  he  finds  the  picturesque 
elaboration  of  poesy ;  the  incisiveness  of  Tacitus,  the  narra- 
tive powers  of  Livy,  learnt  at  first  hand,  teach  a  student  the 
essentials  of  a  historical  style.  For  such  qualities  as  these 
must  be  felt,  and  absorbed ;  they  cannot  be  imparted  by 
precept.  Again,  the  ancient  literatures  embrace  the  whole  of 
attainable  knowledge  in  the  secular  sphere.  It  is  only  by 
reading  that  a  modern  can  enter  into  the  true  significance  of 
antiquity :  the  way  lies  alone  through  the  gateway  of  the 
famous  writers.  Erasmus  is  anxious  that  the  learner  should 
penetrate  into  the  actual  personality  of  each  author  studied; 
of  this  personality  his  literary  expression  is  an  inseparable 
part,  and  demands  therefore  intimate  analysis.  There  may, 
there  will,  be  much  in  any  ancient  book  which  for  some  time 
will  remain  hidden  even  from  the  most  industrious.  But  the 
moral  temper,  the  aesthetic  form,  the  worldly  wisdom  which  a 
great  work  reveals,  the  student  will  in  part  realise,  and  will 
thereby  enter  into  a  new  possession  :  by  such  reading  he  will 
acquire  an  insight  into  a  civilisation.  Finally,  the  master 
will  remember  the  individuality  of  his  pupils,  and  will  direct 
the  aim  of  a  lesson  accordingly.  For  example,  a  masterful  boy 
will  not  be  left  to  browse  upon  the  Homeric  stories  of  the 
wayward  Achilles,  whilst  he  may  well  take  warning  from  the 
fate  of  Xerxes.  Moreover,  if  another  has  before  him  a  career 
which  demands  a  high  sense  of  responsibility — as  for  example 
a  young  noble  or  prince — the  teacher  will  call  his  attention  to 
the  lessons  of  philosophy  and  of  history,  and  select  authors 
from  that  point  of  view. 

Regarding  procedure,  the  master  will  from  the  outset  base 
his  method  upon  the  principle  that  learning  depends  upon 
interest.  The  subject  or  the  text  must  be  introduced  in  what- 
ever way  may  best  stimulate  this.  The  wise  teacher  will  spare 
no  pains  in  learning  how  to  create  an  atmosphere  favourable  to 


The  Method  of  Readmg  a7i  Author      r  1 7 

the  assimilation  of  new  matter.  This  principle  is  worked  out 
with  much  clearness  in  the  De  Ratione  Studit,  §  10,  where 
Erasmus  exhibits  the  essential  condition  of  all  good  teaching 
in  relation  to  lessons  on  Terence  and  Vergil.  "  You  begin  by 
offering  an  appreciation  of  the  author,  and  state  what  is 
necessary  concerning  his  life  and  surroundings,  his  talent  and 
the  characteristics  of  his  style.... Next  you  proceed  to  treat 
briefly  and  clearly  the  argument  of  the  play,  taking  each 
situation  in  due  course."  The  passage  which  follows  in  the 
same  paragraph,  upon  the  best  manner  of  opening  the  study 
of  the  second  Eclogue  deserves  careful  attention.  A  Herbart- 
ian  might  well  seize  upon  these  examples  to  prove  Erasmus  a 
prophet  of  "apperception." 

After  a  preliminary  construe,  to  gain  a  knowledge  of  the 
general  sense,  which  may  presumably  be  given  by  the  master, 
serious  application  to  the  text  is  first  directed  to  the  gram- 
matical structure,  prosody,  and  vocabulary,  with  particular 
reference  to  parallel  word-forms  in  Greek.  The  teacher  notes 
any  conspicuous  elegance  in  choice  of  words,  or  such  peculi- 
arities as  "archaism,  novel  usage,  Graecisms."  Orthography  has 
a  place  here,  and  etymology.  The  rhetorical  factor  at  the 
same  time  falls  to  be  considered.  This  is  of  great  importance. 
For  sound  expression,  as  an  acquirement  of  our  own,  is  de- 
pendent upon  close  regard  to  the  style  of  the  great  models  of 
antiquity.  The  differences  of  the  various  literary  forms — the 
oratorical  and  historical  style,  the  satyric  and  the  epic,  for 
example — are  now  dealt  with.  It  is  necessary  thereupon  to 
treat  style  analytically.  Metaphors,  similes;  the  artifices  of 
poetical  prose,  and  of  oratorical  poetry ;  the  accepted  formulae 
of  the  letter-writer,  or  the  orator ;  the  vast  complex  of  ampli- 
fication which  forms  the  material  of  the  De  Copia ;  the 
authoritative  structure  of  the  political  or  the  forensic  oration — 
all  these  are  dissected,  compared  with  other  known  instances, 
criticised  and  made  available  for  future  use.  Nor  will  the 
rhetorical  factor  be  regarded  by  the  master  in  its  purely 
technical   aspect.      For   he  will  analyse  the   sources   of    the 


ii8  The  Liberal  Studies 

pleasurable  emotion  aroused  by  any  special  passage  through 
its  manner  of  expression. 

Thirdly,  the  lesson  will  allot  a  large  space  to  subject-matter. 
As  this  is  the  chief  end  of  the  study  of  authors,  so  it  must 
constitute  the  real  core  of  every  lesson.  It  is  a  characteristic 
instruction  to  the  master :  "  postremo  ad  philosophiam  veniat 
et  poetarum  fabulas  apte  trahat  ad  mores'." 

The  Eclogue  referred  to  is  handled  by  way  of  example  as  a 
lesson  on  the  conditions  of  true  friendship.  For  it  is  by 
observing  examples  of  conduct  set  forth  in  literature,  and 
especially  in  history  treated  after  a  literary  manner,  that  we 
learn  to  distinguish  between  good  and  bad  actions,  between 
disgrace  and  honourable  repute.  In  the  same  spirit  the  master 
will  seize  upon  all  matter  which  may  be  used  as  a  basis  for 
moral  suasion.  It  was  thus  that  Erasmus  turned  the  attack 
upon  the  devotion  of  the  scholar  to  pagan  Letters  by  per- 
petually forcing  to  the  front  the  doctrine  of  the  "  ethical  end  " 
of  the  new  education. 

But  the  subject-matter  of  authors  includes  much  besides. 
The  humour  of  the  satyrist  or  the  comic  poet  will  be  brought 
clearly  to  view.  It  will  be  shown  how  Comedy  treats  of  the 
less  strenuous  emotions ;  while  Tragedy  appeals  to  the  deeper 
currents  of  human  feeling.  Nor  will  the  logical  fence  of 
dramatic  dialogue  pass  unnoticed.  Further,  descriptions  of 
places,  of  physical  features,  of  animals,  plants  and  natural 
phenomena,  will  be  called  for.  Allusions  to  myth,  tradition, 
and  to  history  will  be  explained,  and  political  and  social  con- 
ditions of  antiquity  referred  to.  Erasmus  admits  that  only 
few  scholars  will  follow  so  far  :  and  that  the  competent  master 
is  rarely  to  be  found.  He  adds  a  caution  against  undue 
digression  :  "  ne  taedio  graventur  ingenia  discentium." 

Upon  what  have  been  alluded  to  as  devices  not  much  can  be 
said.  First,  it  should  be  noticed  that  very  often  the  text  itself 
of  the  author  was,  in  the  absence  of  cheap  editions,  dictated^ 

^  The  right  method  of  reading  is  laid  down  with  precision  in  Op.  i.  447, 
which  passage  is  printed,  infra,  p.  223. 


The  Method  of  Reading  an  Author      119 

either  as  work  to  be  prepared  in  advance  or  during  the  lesson 
itself,  Melanchthon  had  to  provide  Greek  extracts  for  his  class 
at  Wittenberg.  The  increasing  activity  of  the  presses  at 
Venice,  Florence,  and  Lyons  rendered  this  less  necessary  before 
the  date  of  Erasmus'  death.  But  everything  beyond  the  bare 
text  was  of  necessity  dictated  :  as  school-boys  certainly  would 
not  use  a  costly  Vocabularius.  Next,  Erasmus  discourages 
literal  note-taking  as  a  habit  injurious  to  memory  and  to 
the  power  of  selection.  Such  as  were  taken  were  to  be 
reduced  to  order,  and  arranged  under  headings  in  manuscript 
books.  Charts  and  lists  of  words  might  be  wisely  hung 
on  the  schoolroom  walls.  Thirdly,  if  questions  were  asked 
these  would  be  mainly  catechetical,  to  test  memory.  Yet 
there  is  in  the  Colloquies  much  questioning  which  is  of  a 
Socratic  sort,  but  it  is  not  possible  to  claim  for  anything  that 
we  have  of  Erasmus  that  it  has  a  so-called  "heuristic"  aim. 
The  humanist  believed  that  instruction  meant  the  imparting  of 
knowledge  which  the  learner  could  not  possibly  acquire  apart 
from  a  teacher.  However,  seeing  the  great  importance  at- 
tached to  spoken  Latin,  there  is  no  doubt  that  large  opportunity 
for  question  and  answer  and  for  conversational  teaching  was 
provided. 

Erasmus  clearly  intends  that,  both  in  respect  of  choice  of 
subject-matter  and  of  procedure,  teaching  shall  conform  to 
the  "law  of  interest."  He  is,  of  course,  far  from  attaining  a 
method  consciously  based  upon  psychology.  Sound  principles, 
indeed,  he  has,  but  they  are  reached  empirically :  they  are 
partial,  and  often  enough  fail  him.  His  analysis,  as  has  been 
said  before,  is  rarely  deep.  So  we  find  him  always  assuming 
that  his  own  studious  and,  so  to  say,  adult,  interests  constitute 
the  only  rational  rule  of  life.  He  is  thus  led  to  overlook 
completely  the  physical  energy  and  its  accompanying  activities, 
which  forbid  the  average  boy  to  accept  a  standard  of  attraction 
which  consists,  all  but  exclusively,  in  absorption  in  purely 
passive  instruction. 


I20  The  Liberal  Studies 

None  the  less  the  general  method  of  treatment  of  a  classical 
lesson  reveals  a  remarkable  touch  of  modern  practice.  It 
exhibits  systematic  progress  from  the  initial  rousing  of  interest 
and  preparation  of  the  ground,  through  exposition  and  varied 
treatment  of  the  material,  to  careful  welding  of  new  acquisition 
to  knowledge  already  held,  and  finally  to  application  first,  to 
practice  in  composition,  and  then,  more  broadly,  to  thought 
and  conduct. 


§  4.     Orators  and  Oratory. 

The  first  place  amongst  classical  writers  was  undoubtedly 
given  by  the  humanists  to  the  orators  and  the  writers  upon 
rhetoric.  This  is  closely  connected  with  the  position  accorded 
to  oratory  in  the  society  of  the  Renaissance. 

In  a  previous  chapter  attention  was  drawn  to  the  character- 
istic of  the  Revival  which  consists  in  the  assertion  oi personality 
as  a  determinate  aim  in  contrast  to  the  mediaeval  spirit,  whose 
achievements,  for  example,  in  art,  architecture,  science  or  Church 
order,  strike  us  as  corporate  and  impersonal.  Petrarch,  how- 
ever, struck  the  dominant  note  of  the  new  age  in  an  exuberant 
self-consciousness.  Thenceforward  the  essence  of  Italian  viritl 
was  that  it  recognised  its  own  distinction.  Now,  although  this 
characteristic  is  stamped  upon  all  forms  of  humanist  production, 
oratory  lent  itself  most  readily  to  the  infection  of  this  spirit. 
In  the  eloquence  of  the  Renaissance  the  personality  of  the 
speaker  wholly  dominates  his  subject,  which  is  often  merely 
a  vehicle  for  the  exhibition  of  learning,  taste  or  flattery.  There 
was  in  Italy  in  the  Quattrocento  a  remarkable  demand  for 
Latin  speeches  of  a  formal  sort — a  demand  due,  in  part, 
to  the  inexhaustible  supply.  "  Every  government,  and  large 
municipality,  even  private  families  of  position,  employed  their 
official  Orator,"  says  Villari'.    A  Latin  oration  held  at  a  festival 

^  Villari,  Machiavelli,  i.  93. 


Orators  and  Oratory  121 

the  place  which  music  does  to-day.  In  a  land  of  multifarious 
sovereignties  like  Italy,  diplomatic  commissions,  dynastic  cele- 
brations, academic  functions,  apart  from  civic  and  semi-private 
festivals,  provided  countless  ceremonial  opportunities  for  "elo- 
quence." It  was  inevitable  that  the  lack  of  substantial  content 
compelled  attention  to  rhetorical  display'. 

This  was,  however,  the  perversion  of  an  effort  which  other- 
wise had  ample  justification.  Latin  was  unavoidably  the 
language  of  affairs  ;  its  cultivation  on  the  oratorical  side  was, 
therefore,  wholly  desirable.  As  an  educational  instrument 
Roman  and  Greek  oratory  was  deserving  of  close  study  and 
imitation.  But  we  may  doubt  whether  it  would  have  received 
the  enthusiastic  regard  which  all  humanists  accorded  to  it  but 
for  two  facts,  the  space  filled  by  his  Orations  amongst  the 
extant  works  of  Cicero,  and  the  accident  that  the  one  practical 
and  systematic  treatise  upon  Education  left  from  antiquity 
treats  of  the  education  of  the  Orator.  It  is  indispensable  to 
any  proper  understanding  of  humanism  to  realise  the  position 
filled  by  Quintilian  in  the  world  of  fifteenth  century  scholarship. 
From  the  date  of  the  circulation  of  the  complete  codex  of  his 
work,  about  1418 — 21,  his  fame  grew  rapidly  and  overshadowed  V 
that  of  all  Roman  prose  writers,  Cicero  alone  excepted.  Every 
humanist  tract  upon  education  or  upon  rhetoric  is  largely  a 
reproduction  of  Quintilian  :  words,  phrases,  illustrations,  criti- 
cisms, principles,  are  often  merely  copied  from  the  Roman 
master.  Typical  examples  are  Aeneas  Sylvius  oti  Education, 
and  the  De  Copia  of  Erasmus". 

In  presence  then  of  the  demand  and  the  apparatus  for 
rhetorical  training  it  is  not  surprising  that  oratory  filled  a  large 

1  Burckhardt,  Renaissance,  p.  240,  for  examples :  "  Filelfo  begins  a 
speech  at  a  betrothal  with  the  words  '  Aristotle,  the  Peripatetic'."  "  Most 
of  his  speeches  are  an  atrocious  patchwork  of  classical  and  biblical  quotations 
tacked  on  to  a  string  of  commonplaces." 

^  The  former  in  Woodward,  Vittorino,  p.  136:  Quintilian  was  reduced 
to  epitome  by  F.  Patrizi,  about  1460 — 70.     Bod.  Lib.,  Can.  MSS.  285. 


122  The  Liberal  Studies 


place  in  the  curriculum  of  the  Italian  schools.  It  was  from 
them  in  due  course  transferred  to  the  schools  of-  Germany, 
France  and  England.  Erasmus,  therefore,  is  but  typical  of 
humanist  masters  in  his  view  of  the  importance  of  the  subject 
in  education.  It  will  be  understood  that  the  relation  between 
the  study  of  ancient  orators  and  the  corresponding  art  of 
rhetorical  composition  is  an  intimate  one,  more  intimate  than  in 
any  other  branch  of  humanist  instruction,  not  excepting  Letter- 
writing.  The  rule  that  an  author  must  be  read  as  a  model  for 
imitation,  and  not  only  as  literature,  applies,  therefore,  particu- 
larly to  Cicero  and  Demosthenes. 

The  concept  of  oratory  as  it  was  derived  from  the  Roman 
masters  was  one  of  much  distinction.  The  orator,  in  the  first 
place,  is  defined  as  "the  good  citizen  skilled  in  speaking." 
Quintilian's  words  are  "  quum  bene  dicere  non  possit  nisi  vir 
bonus."  He  supports  this  from  the  Gorgias — "dfay/cr;  rov 
prjTopiKov  StKaiov  ctvai."  Thus  the  education  of  an  orator 
implied  that  a  high  moral  standard  was  aimed  at.  For  the 
noble  expression  of  noble  thought  must  be  the  product  of 
a  noble  personality.  Next,  oratory  implies  wide  knowledge, 
indeed  the  ideal  orator  will  be  an  omnivorous  reader.  Lastly, 
he  will  have  a  corresponding  command  of  language.  The 
function  of  eloquence  in  stimulating  virtuous  ideas  and  actions 
was  tacitly  accepted  in  spite  of  much  of  what  to  us  seems 
disappointing  experience  in  the  Italy  of  Lorenzo  and  of 
Rodrigo  Borgia — a  period  when  the  country  reeked  with 
oratory. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  discuss  the  selection  of  models  for 
study.  Cicero  and  Demosthenes  stand  out  above  all.  Yet 
Erasmus  is  in  accord  with  Quintilian  in  refusing  to  limit  the 
learner  to  these.  Quintilian  is  the  great  master  of  technique ; 
though  the  'De  Oratore  of  Cicero  is  to  be  closely  followed. 
The  speeches  of  Livy  and  Sallust  are  of  great  service :  Tacitus 
is  less  useful.  Lucan,  as  a  rhetorical  poet,  is  worth  study. 
Isocrates  is  referred  to.     Unlike  Sturm,  who  says  of  Luther's 


Composition  in  Latin  Prose  123 

German  eloquence,  "Lutherus  quasi  magister  extitit  nostri 
sermonis,  sive  puritatem  consideres,  sive  copiam,"  Erasmus 
has  not  one  word  to  show  that  he  recognises  vernacular 
oratory  as  other  than  a  self-denying  condescension  of  the 
preacher. 


§  5.     Composition  in  Latin  Prose. 

It  will  be  convenient  to  consider  here  the  subject  of 
Composition,  since  its  climax  is  reached  in  an  oration.  The 
study  of  eloquent  I^atinity  in  Germany  rested  on  sanctions 
somewhat  different  from  those  of  the  Italian  world.  There 
also,  however,  Latin  was  the  tongue  of  educated  and  pro- 
fessional life,  of  administration,  law,  medicine,  the  teaching 
profession,  the  Church.  It  has  been  shown  that  of  books 
circulating  in  Germany,  even  as  late  as  the  middle  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  70  per  cent,  are  written  in  Latin  :  in  the 
lifetime  of  Erasmus  the  proportion  was  no  doubt  larger  still. 
For  we  must  remember  that  in  distinction  to  Italy  there  was 
as  yet  no  literature,  in  German,  of  scholarly  type,  whether 
serious  or  "polite,"  to  correspond  to  the  work  of  Poliziano, 
Bembo,  or  Machiavelli,  at  least  until  the  Reformation.  Latin 
composition,  therefore,  was  a  necessary  aptitude.  This  explains 
how  it  was  that  humanist  masters  were  able  to  retain  public 
assent  to  the  leading  place  which  they  claimed  for  Latin  prose. 
There  was  a  practical  demand  for  Latin,  and  Erasmus, 
Melanchthon  and  Sturm  insisted  that  this  should  be  classical 
Latin.  It  was  no  question  of  an  "  accomplishment " :  the 
business-like  Luther,  with  his  strong  German  bias,  was  not  less 
clear  upon  the  point  than  the  humanist. 

That  oratory  was  the  chief  force  in  affairs  was  a  conviction 
based  upon  the  precedents  of  Greek  and  Roman  history,  as  the 
humanists  understood  it.  It  was  their  tendency  to  view  all 
prose  writing,  and  even  poetry,  through  the  glamour  of  rhetoric. 


124  '^^^  Liberal  Studies 

"My  greatest  approbation,"  says  Erasmus,  "is  reserved  for  a 
rhetorical  poem  and  poetical  oratory... the  rhetorical  art  should 
transpire  through  the  poem."  This  is  the  evil  influence  of 
Lucan'.  The  Epistolary  style  became  artificial  and  inflated, 
and  was  the  subject  of  endless  hand-books  upon  the  form  and 
diction  of  various  classes  of  Letters.  Further,  "  the  mysteries 
of  the  Faith,"  so  Erasmus  contends,  "owe  their  power  over 
the  minds  and  conduct  of  men,  in  large  degree,  to  the  grace 
and  eloquence  of  their  presentation^."  For  thus  the  Fathers 
of  the  best  age  qualified  themselves  to  be  the  teachers  of  the 
Church  by  their  training  in  rhetoric  and  style.  Eloquence, 
therefore,  in  the  mind  of  Erasmus  has,  as  a  practical  art,  a  wide 
range  :  it  covers  forensic,  didactic,  hortatory,  complimentary, 
and  other  forms  of  address ;  historical,  narrative  and  descriptive 
composition ;  argument,  dialogue  and  correspondence.  In- 
directly it  affects  poetical  art.  It  is  evident  then  that  systematic 
teaching  of  Latin  Composition  will  largely  concern  itself  with 
the  oratorical  style  as  that  form  which  has  something  common 
to  all  styles  I 

On  the  other  hand  Erasmus  affirmed  with  iteration  his 
protest  against  absorption  in  the  art  of  expression.  Professional 
aims  and  breadth  of  culture  alike  come  before  style.  His 
general  position  on  Imitation  has  been  referred  to.  In  the 
dialogue  De  Recta  Pronunciatione  he  realises  that  reaction 
against  mediaeval  "  barbarism  "  has  gone  too  far  in  the  direc- 
tion of  stylistic  display*.     In  Christian  education  ostentation 

^  Eras.  Op.  iii.  104  D. 

'^  Op.  V.  30  A,  iii.  1275  D,  E. 

^  So  Colet  requires  "eloquence"  as  the  characteristic  product  of  scholar- 
ship for  St  Paul's:  Lupton,  Colet,  p.  169. 

*  His  words  are  :  "  This  is  apparently  a  law  of  human  progress,  that  on 
attaining  a  certain  point  in  its  course  a  movement  only  escapes  harmful 
exaggeration  by  a  violent  rebound  in  the  opposite  direction,  whereby  the 
evil  tendency  is  corrected  by  its  contrary."  Op.  i.  923  C,  E.  This  is  an 
interesting  recognition  of  the  law  of  re-action,  and  implies  a  historical 
perception  which  is  unusual  in  Erasmus. 


Latin  Composition  125 

in  speech,  which  strives  to  display  personal  qualities,  will  be 
discouraged'.  Hence,  "it  is  good  to  speak  Attic  Greek,  but 
it  should  not  be  too  ostentatiously  Attic*."  The  old  au- 
thorities, he  affirms,  always  insisted  upon  appropriateness, 
naturalness,  sincerity :  the  subject  first,  with  expression  in 
strict  harmony. 

Yet,  though  such  a  position  is  didactically  sound,  in  practice 
Erasmus  is  not  always  consistent.  For  in  discourse  appropriate- 
ness needs  to  be  enhanced  by  fulness  {copia)  and  elegance, 
which  follow  very  closely  in  degree  of  importance.  Expression 
cannot  be  truly  "simple"  or  perfectly  "adapted"  unless  it 
emanates  from  mastery  of  all  the  resources  of  the  art^  The 
best  equipped  scholar  moves  most  easily  within  the  rudiments 
of  his  subject.  Thus  it  still  remains  true  that  the  teacher  of 
composition  will  find  it  necessary  to  lay  stress  upon  training 
in  the  whole  range  of  rhetoric.  Redundancy,  embellishment, 
copia  rerum  et  verborum,  carried  even  to  excess,  are  not  faults 
in  a  learner* :  oratory  must  be  taught  as  a  conscious  art,  to 
serve  as  an  equipment,  whose  superfluities  will  be  cast  off  as 
taste  and  judgment  mature.  Nay,  it  is  defensible  to  accustom 
the  scholar  to  argue  the  Unjust  Cause  for  the  sake  of  practice  in 
setting  out  every  side  of  a  question.  Hence  what  is  objection- 
able as  a  habit  of  style  is  allowable  or  necessary  as  a  stage  in 
education,  when  the  entire  apparatus  of  Cicero  and  Quintilian 
is  to  be  employed. 

The  epistolary  style,  for  obvious  reasons,  ranked  next  in 
importance.  The  function  of  correspondence  in  the  life  of  the 
Renaissance  was  to  serve  as  the  organ  of  cosmopolitan  criti- 
cism. It  was  so  recognised  by  scholars,  in  spite  of  the  fact 
that  it  degenerated  into  a  vehicle  of  ostentation  on  the  one 
hand,  and  of  shameless  flattery  or  slander  on  the  other. 
Erasmus  protested  that  the  ancients  respected  the  limits  of 
right  criticism,  whilst  Christians  had  forgotten  them.     Letters 

^  Woodward,  Vittorino,  p.  233,  n.  3.  "^  Eras.  Op.  iii.  10  D. 

^  Op.  iii.  726  c,  D.  *  Op.  i.  5B,  iii.  197  c. 


126  The  Liberal  Studies 

were  written  to  be  kept  and  were  often  collected  by  their 
writers'.  Immortal  fame  might  be  expected  for  one  who 
numbered  several  fine  Latinists  among  his  correspondents. 

As  regards  Methods,  the  beginnings  of  composition  arose 
by  natural  process  from  the  first  efforts  at  conversation,  that 
"daily  intercourse  with  those  accustomed  to  express  themselves 
with  exactness  and  refinement "  to  which  Erasmus  attached  so 
great  importance.  The  master  amplified  this  by  dictating 
formulas  (preserved  in  the  earlier  Colloquies)  for  use  in  play, 
intercourse,  entertainments  and  school.  At  this  stage  rules  of 
syntax  were  learnt  as  described  above  ^  The  order  of  exercises 
in  composition  is  not  systematically  set  out.  But  simple  original 
compositions  (with  full  directions  for  treatment),  by  way  of 
expansion  of  conversation,  may  be  begun  very  early.  Subjects 
will  be  chosen  with  due  regard  to  the  intelligence  and  interest 
of  the  pupil :  say,  a  theme  from  an  incident  of  ancient  history, 
with  a  moral  reflection  ;  an  apologue,  or  a  simple  myth.  General 
knowledge  will  provide  a  topic :  the  powers  of  a  magnet,  or 
"mirum  polypi  ingenium."  Such  exercises  will  demand  only 
grammatical  accuracy  within  the  forms  of  the  simple  sentence, 
with  a  gradually  enlarging  vocabulary.  The  learner  will  acquire 
the  art  of  making  a  lexicon  of  his  own,  arranging  his  words  not 
alphabetically,  but  under  subject-headings  ^ 

A  second  stage  is  reached  when  the  close  study  of  easier 
authors,  as  models,  is  possible ;  such  aids  as  De  Copia,  De 
Conscribendis  Episiolis,  and  the  Colloquies  are  introduced. 
Greek  and  Latin  prose  exercises  may  with  advantage  be 
worked  together.     The  exercises  now  available  are  apparently 

^  The  letter  of  Poggio  to  Vittonno  (cp.  Vittorino,  p.  83)  is  an  excellent 
example  of  the  humanist  letter  of  the  "  self-conscious  "  sort. 

^  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  163,  §  3.     Cp.  p.  106. 

^  De  Copia;  Of.  i.  11.  So  Nausea,  De  Puero  litt.  inst.,  p.  52,  urges 
indices  for  "  nobiliores  sententias,  quas  Graeci  yvunas  dicunt,"  so  that  they 
are  readily  available  for  composition.  The  De  Rat.  Stttd.,  §  8  onwards, 
should  be  read  as  the  text  of  what  follows. 


Composition  in  Latin  Prose  127 

the  following :  {a)  paraphrase  of  poetry,  {b)  duplicate  treat- 
ment of  one  theme  after  differing  models,  {c)  exposition  of  one 
argument  upon  divergent  lines,  {d)  imitation  of  an  easy  Letter 
of  Cicero  or  Pliny,  (e)  the  most  important  exercise  of  all, 
version  from  Greek  into  Latin.  It  has  the  authority  of  Quin- 
tilian  ;  and  Erasmus  would,  we  know,  not  admit  as  a  qualifica- 
tion that  to  Quintilian  Latin  was  a  vernacular  tongue.  This 
practice  will  be  found  to  involve  three  valuable  processes  :  the 
analysis  of  Greek  construction ;  the  comparison  of  the  genius 
of  each  language  in  respect  of  sentence  structure ;  exercise  in 
moving  rapidly  through  sentence  forms  and  vocabulary  of  Latin 
for  the  purpose  of  reaching  equivalent  expression. 

The  third  stage,  corresponding  to  that  of  systematic  gram- 
matical study,  is  that  of  full  freedom  on  the  part  of  the  pupil, 
when  theme  alone  is  suggested  with  occasional  hints  as  to 
models  to  be  observed.  There  are  four  forms  of  Composition 
for  general  use :  the  Epistle,  the  Oration,  the  Declamation 
upon  a  historical  or  general  subject,  the  Defence  of  a  just  or 
an  unjust  Cause.  The  study  of  the  entire  art  of  the  rhetori- 
cian as  laid  down  by  Cicero  and  Quintilian  is  now  begun. 
Seven  or  eight  carefully  devised  and  corrected  exercises  will 
be  a  sufficient  introduction  to  the  art  of  laying  out  subject- 
matter  for  original  composition.  Much  stress  is  now  laid 
upon  correction  :  the  master  criticising  in  turn  (a)  selection, 
(d)  treatment,  {c)  imitation.  He  will  censure  omission  or  bad 
arrangement  of  matter,  exaggeration,  carelessness,  awkwardness 
of  expression.     He  will  then  ask  for  a  re-written  copy. 

The  chief  aids  to  composition  were,  besides  the  great 
classic  masters,  the  Elegantiae  of  Valla,  with  typical  letters  of 
Aeneas  Sylvius,  and  Poliziano.  Perotti,  De  conscribendis  Epi- 
stolis,  Trapezuntius,  and  Barzizza  were  in  constant  use  in 
schools  organised  under  Melanchthon's  advice,  but  neither 
Erasmus  nor  Sturm  utilised  such  text-books\     The  De  Copia 

^  Erasmus'  own  work  De  Conscr.  Epist.  was  largely  used.    Cp.  Paulsen 
Class.  Unler.  p.  107 — 8. 


128  The  Liberal  Studies 

Verborum  et  Rerum  is  the  elaborate  aid  to  Latin  prose  pre- 
pared by  Erasmus  for  the  use  of  students,  and  issued  from 
Cambridge.  It  is  a  manual  of  "enrichment"  and  "variation," 
based  mainly  upon  Quintilian  viii,  with  modern  examples. 
He  defines  the  purpose  of  "  copia  "  :  "  brevity  does  not  consist 
in  saying  as  little  as  possible,  but  in  saying  the  best  that  can  be 
said  in  the  shortest  way."  "Copia"  implies  right  selection  of 
words,  figures,  ideas  :  examples  to  the  point,  judgments  clear- 
cut,  digressions  rigidly  in  hand,  figures  obviously  appropriate. 
It  is  by  no  means  identical  with  "  indigesta  turba  "  of  illustra- 
tion, or  with  tedious  repetition  :  but  variety,  brightness,  move- 
ment, are  of  the  essence  of  "  copia."  A  student  of  the  classical 
Renaissance,  desirous  to  make  a  first-hand  acquaintance  with 
the  art  of  expression  as  understood  by  humanist  writers,  cannot 
do  better  than  make  a  careful  analysis  of  the  De  Copia,  read- 
ing side  by  side  the  De  Oratore  and  the  fourth  and  eighth 
books  of  the  Institutio  Oratorio^. 


%  6.     History  and  Historians. 

Erasmus  has  himself  admitted  that  he  is  no  historian. 
We  may  with  confidence  accept  his  disclaimer.  But  in  this 
respect  he  has  the  company  of  well-nigh  every  humanist. 

It  has  just  been  said  that  oratory  and  orators  constituted 
the  true  literary  interest  of  the  men  of  Letters  of  the  earlier 
Renaissance.  Now  there  is,  has  always  been,  and,  it  must  be 
confessed,  cannot  but  be,  a  sharp  line  of  division  between  the 
real  historian  and  the  professed  stylist.  The  great  orators 
knew  it.  Cicero  and  Quintilian,  for  example,  are  at  one  in 
regarding  Thucydides  as  a  man  apart,  from  whom  the  orator 
can  learn  hardly  anything.     Xenophon   on    the   other  hand, 

1  On  the  purpose  and  value  of  the  De  Copia  cp.  Benoist,  De  Puer. 
p.  loi.  Formal  as  it  was  in  method,  there  is  no  doubt  that  it  imparted 
excellent  training  in  systematic  observation  of,  and  practice  in,  style. 


Rhetorical  Historians  129 

"cuius  sermo  est  melle  dulcior,"  is  most  attractive.  Livy  and 
Sallust,  as  historians,  are  by  reason  of  their  measured  judg- 
ments alien  from  the  oratorical  ideal.  They  may,  indeed,  be 
pressed  into  service,  like  any  other  store-houses  of  instances, 
for  purposes  of  argument,  of  parallel,  of  illustration,  of  example. 
But  Quintilian  perceived  that  the  orator  whose  function  it  is  to 
convince  an  auditory  has  little  in  common  with  one  who  writes 
"ad  memoriam  posteritatis  et  ingenii  famam'."  The  humanist 
was,  undoubtedly,  drawn  to  the  historians,  and  Erasmus  lays 
stress  on  the  need  of  studying  them.  He  specifically  advises 
Livy,  Plutarch,  Tacitus,  Sallust  and  Herodotus.  In  one  of  his 
letters  he  urges  that  a  youth  preparing  for  public  service  should 
add  to  this  reading  the  moral  treatises  of  Cicero :  and  from  the 
course  thus  sketched  "the  practical  wisdom  so  essential  to  a 
man  taking  his  part  in  public  affairs  will  be  most  surely 
attained  ^"  Yet  in  spite  of  this,  it  is  quite  certain  that  all 
humanists,  with  the  conspicuous  exception  of  Flavio  Biondo, 
honoured  the  historians  for  that  very  quality  which  as  histo- 
rians was  most  perilous  to  them,  namely,  their  rhetoric.  This 
then  is  the  first  use  which  Erasmus  would  make  of  a  classical 
historian— he  is  a  model  of  rhetorical  treatment  of  narrative  or 
debate.  The  closer  the  affinity  he  reveals  to  the  orator,  the 
greater  his  attraction.  For  instance,  Erasmus,  writing  it  is 
true  in  his  early  days,  demands  from  a  modem  writer  of 
histories  correctness  of  style,  "elegantia  Sallustiana,"  "felicitas 
Liviana,"  clearness  in  presentation,  inspiring  variety,  artistic 
completeness,  and  so  on^.  We  recognise  at  once  the  artifices 
of  the  stylist.  But,  writing  in  the  maturity  of  his  powers, 
in   the    De  Ratione  Siudii,   he  propounds   historical  themes, 

^  For  the  humanist  view  Aeneas  Sylvius,  De  Liber.  Educ.  (in  Woodward, 
Vittorino  da  Feltre)  may  be  read.  "  It  is  peculiar  to  eloquence  to  depend 
on  admiration,"  Quint,  x.  7.  17. 

'  Op.  iii.  97 1  D.  But  we  should  particularly  have  liked  to  find  P>asmus 
explaining  in  what  manner  such  reading  would  mould  the  judgment  of  the 
student. 

3  op.  i.  1817. 

w.  9 


130  The  Liberal  Studies 

suggested  by  reading,  which  are  purely  formal,  and  reveal  an 
entire  absence  of  historical  perception  ^ 

In  the  second  place,  the  historian  is  to  be  valued  in  that  he 
provides  us  with  a  stock  of  facts  for  the  illustration  of  our 
arguments.  Here  "the  rarer  and  more  marvellous  the  instance, 
the  greater  will  be  the  interest  evoked. . . .  From  old  stories  and 
annals,  and  also  from  modern  history,  we  should  learn  by  heart, 
and  so  have  in  readiness,  examples  of  virtue  and  vice,  of  re- 
markable occurrences  of  any  kind.  Now  such  facts  may  be 
drawn  from  the  history  of  every  nation — from  the  company  of 
great  historians  of  Greece  and  Rome,  from  the  Hebrew  Scrip- 
tures ;  from  the  events  handed  down  to  memory  from  the  story  of 
the  Egyptian,  the  Persian,  the  French,  the  British  nations;  from 
the  stories  of  Sparta,  of  Thebes  and  Athens,  even  from  the 
traditions  of  the  Scythian.  For  every  people  has  its  remark- 
able occurrences,  its  customs  and  institutions-."  This  "spice 
of  antiquarian  knowledge,"  as  he  calls  it  elsewhere,  is  in  no 
true  sense  historical  equipment.  It  is  all  a  mere  matter  of 
"copia,"  oratorical  and  stylistic  embellishment,  which  indeed  is 
evident  from  the  fact  that  Erasmus  very  rarely  refers  to  histori- 
cal reading,  except  from  the  point  of  view  of  composition. 

Thirdly,  a  literary  history  is  to  the  humanist  a  gallery  of 
moral  example.  Perhaps  this  is  the  highest  function  of 
history  in  the  hands  of  the  teacher:  to  illustrate  moral  law  by 
recorded  "cases."  This  is  what  Sadoleto*  means  when  he 
vaguely  puts  forward  the  ancient  historians  as  full  of  warnings 
against  evil  policy,  and  as  such,  of  high  value  in  training  the 
young.  It  would  be  interesting  to  know  how  the  Cardinal 
Secretary  himself  interpreted  such  moral  guidance  in  handling 
the  politics  of  Leo  X.     Now  this    method  of  application  to 

^  Infra,  p.  173.  "  Historians  should  enrich  their  narrative  with  fictitious 
speeches,  than  which  nothing  is  better  suited  to  their  purpose."  De  Copia, 
i.  106  D. 

"^  Eras.  Op.  i.  389  F,  x.  1733  E- 

'  Sadoleto,  De  Puer.  Instit.  iii.  109. 


History  as  Biography  131 

immediate  edification  undoubtedly  prejudiced  humanist  history 
as  a  serious  subject,  either  of  enquiry  or  of  instruction. 
History  became  fragmentary,  artificial,  a  cento  of  examples,  of 
commonplaces,  of  biographical  idealisations.  Critical  study 
tended  to  be  shirked,  as  spoiling  good  illustrations;  and  the 
art  of  the  historical  writer  was  limited  to  clothing  accepted 
versions  of  facts  in  novel  and  ingenious  form.  Bruni  and 
Poggio,  in  their  Italian  histories,  left  models  of  imitation  in  its 
most  barren  form'.  History,  consequently,  took  but  a  poor 
place  in  education.  Even  a  Prince,  who  is  to  be  nourished  on 
the  Politics  and  the  De  Officiis,  may  be  content  with  a  modest 
review  of  the  historians;  the  mode  and  extent  of  such  interest 
being  left  quite  vague*.  The  view  of  the  function  of  history  as 
edification  is  most  instructive  to  the  student  of  the  Revival. 
For  it  is  in  entire  harmony  with  the  prevailing  concept  of  the 
power  of  ethical  teaching  to  mould  life.  The  virtue  of  the 
antique  world  might  easily  be  restored — so  the  scholar  held — 
if  only  examples  of  ancient  virtue  were  persuasively  expressed 
and  sufficiently  forced  upon  attention.  A  belief  that  the 
impulse  to  imitate  could  be  produced  by  passive  contempla- 
tion of  artificially  selected  situations  was  the  bane  of  the 
literary  educator.  Erasmus  himself  knew  better,  but  in  respect 
of  history  he  did  not  rise  above  the  conventional  attitudes  of 
his  day. 

We  must  not  forget,  however,  that  the  biographical  treat- 
ment of  history  was  in  part  the  result  of  the  conviction — largely 
justified  by  facts — of  the  influence  of  the  Individual  in  the 
Italy  of  the  Renaissance :  and  in  part,  of  the  large  place  filled 
by  the  passion  for  Fame^.     Now  this  is  by  no  means  a  merely 

'  An  accessible  account  of  humanist  historians  is  to  be  found  in  Villari, 
MachiavelH,  ii.  404.     Cp.  also  Voigt,  Wiederbelebting,  ii.  482. 

*  Eras.  Op.  iv.  587. 

^  On  the  subject  of  the  Individual  and  of  Fame  in  the  Renaissance 
cp.  Burckhardt,  The  Renaissance,  p.  134,  Gaspary,  Letteratura,  iii.  14. 
The  classic  expression  of  the  ideal  is  Petrarch's  De  Viris  Illustribus. 

9—2 


132  The  Liberal  Studies 

humanist  weakness.  Machiavelli  is  more  keenly  individualist 
than  Bruni  or  Bembo,  for  he  had  watched  the  forces  of  Italian 
politics  at  first  hand. 

And  thus  we  understand  the  reason  why  the  humanist 
left  no  direct  impress  in  the  department  of  history:  direct, 
advisedly,  for  indirectly  he  made  a  broad  treatment  of  national 
phenomena  possible  by  revealing  to  enquirers  a  completed  civi- 
lisation. Machiavelli  complains  that  the  study  of  histories  is 
divorced  from  affairs,  that  there  is  no  working-in  of  what  is 
learnt  into  modern  polity.  In  the  organisation  of  the  State,  in 
administration,  in  military  science,  in  expansion,  the  lessons  of 
the  past  are  not  realised  for  purposes  of  the  present.  In 
other  words,  the  scholar's  view  of  history  was  purely  literary  ^ 

The  modern  concept  of  history  arose,  in  actual  fact, 
amongst  men  of  action,  or  at  least  amongst  men  in  direct 
contact  with  affairs.  The  diplomatist,  administrator,  politi- 
cian, not  the  scholars,  were  the  authors  of  the  political 
science,  of  which,  in  a  different  sense  to  that  which  Erasmus 
conceived.  History  was  in  truth  the  expression.  Machiavelli 
and  Guicciardini  were  the  first  to  understand  History  as  the 
record  and  analysis  of  the  inner  and  outer  determinations  of 
national  life.  Yet  these  great  Masters,  as  has  been  said,  could 
not  have  been,  had  not  the  Roman  world  stood  revealed  to 
them  by  the  same  scholars  whom  in  their  own  region  they 
superseded ^  They,  too,  were  children  of  the  humanist  Re- 
vival. 

^  Discorsi  :  the  Preface. 

-  Elyot's  views  of  the  aims  of  history  teaching  are  of  interest :  Governour 
i.  82.  Mr  Foster  Watson  has  pointed  out  how  low  a  place  the  teaching  of 
the  subject  held  in  English  schools,  even  in  the  early  part  of  the  17th 
century.  The  first  school-book  of  English  history  known  to  me  is  a  Latin 
metrical  narrative  of  battles:  Ockland's  Anglorum  Praelia,  1582.  This 
was  commanded  to  be  read  in  Grammar  schools.  See  Foster  Watson, 
The  Curriculum,  p-  25. 


Function  of  Logic  in  Education  133 


§  7.     Logic  and  Philosophy. 

This  is  the  convenient  point  at  which  to  estimate  the 
functions  of  logic  in  education.  It  has  already  been  shown 
that  the  mediaevalist  viewed  "dialectica"  in  immediate  re- 
lation to  "grammatical"  This  led  to  a  revolt  on  the  part  of 
the  humanists  against  the  entire  method  which  then  obtained  of 
teaching  these  subjects.  The  scholar,  however,  by  no  means 
banished  the  study  of  Logic  from  education  :  but  he  connected 
it,  not  with  grammar,  but  with  rhetoric.  To  Aeneas  Sylvius 
for  instance,  rhetoric  and  dialectic  are  almost  convertible 
terms  I  The  whole  apparatus  of  rhetoric  as  elaborated  by 
Cicero  and  Quintilian  was  recognised  as  so  much  illustration  of 
logical  method.  Hence  from  an  educational  point  of  view 
Erasmus  lays  down  that  logical  aid  in  ordering  of  subject- 
matter  in  composition  is  indispensable.  The  pupil  must 
understand  by  dialectic  "quo  pacto  alia  propositio  ex  alia 
pendeat :  quot  rationibus  unaquaeque  propositio  fulciri  debet, 
quot  confirmationibus  unaquaeque  ratio^"  But  this  is  the 
only  end  to  which  logic  can  be  profitably  studied.  As  a  sub- 
stantial subject  of  enquir}'  or  a  self-contained  discipline, 
Erasmus  refused  to  consider  its  claims.  "  I  would  not,"  he 
says,  "  have  a  boy  wholly  ignorant  of  logical  rules,  but  I  cer- 
tainly decline  to  have  him  trained  to  exhibit  those  preposterous 
feats  of  dialectical  juggling  and  tumbling  so  much  belauded"*." 
Erasmus,  indeed,  doubts  whether  a  boy  should  be  urged  to  read 
much  logic,  or  whether  a  grown  man  should  carry  forward  the 
study  of  it  beyond  the  mere  stage  of  application:  "  ne  tanquam 
ad  Sirenaeos  scopulos  consenescat*."    Vives,  Melanchthon,  and 

^  Supra,  p.  loi. 

^  Aen.  Sylv.  Op.  p.  989:  based  upon  Quint.  Inst.  Oral.  xii.  1.  13. 

*  Eras.  Op.  i.  526  B  and  v.  850  A. 

*  Op.  i.  922-3. 

'  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  165,  §  4. 


134  rhe  Liberal  Studies 


Sadoleto  speak  with  precisely  the  same  voice,  which  was  that  of 
all  the  Italian  scholars  since  Petrarch.  Dialectic  then  is  an 
aid  to  effective  style.  The  protest  was  by  no  means  otiose,  for 
there  was  no  school  book  more  common  in  Germany  on  the 
eve  of  the  humanist  movement  than  the  repulsive  "  Summulae 
Logicae"  of  Petrus  Hispanus,  afterwards  Pope  John  XXIP. 

That  Erasmus  was  by  temperament  averse  to  philosophical 
speculation  has  been  already  pointed  out.  His  conception  of 
philosophy  excluded  dialectic  or  metaphysic,  whether  ancient 
or  mediaeval.  He  does  not,  indeed,  hesitate  to  speak  of 
Socrates  as  of  one  sharing  divine  inspiration:  "Sancte  Socrates, 
ora  pro  nobis,"  he  is  tempted  to  cry.  But  that  has  reference 
only  to  the  moral  wisdom  which  he  finds  ascribed  to  him  in 
Xenophon  and  Plato.  It  may  be  said  that  of  ethical  theory 
Erasmus  has  as  little  perception  as  the  mediaevalists  had. 
Hence  the  didactic  side  of  ethics  alone  affects  him,  and  for  this 
he  recommends  Hesiod,  Horace,  and  Terence  as  hardly  less 
valuable  than  the  De  Officiis.  Seneca,  and  Plutarch's  Moralia. 
The  "  philosophical  "  lessons  to  be  drawn  from  any  authors 
must  be  carefully  shown  by  the  master  who  will  set  themes  for 
composition  from  Valerius  Maximus  or  Plutarch,  in  part  at 
least  from  the  ethical  point  of  view.  Political  philosophy  is 
hardly  alluded  to ;  however  sound  Erasmus'  judgments  upon 
government  and  royal  responsibility,  it  was  wholly  alien  from 
his  temper  to  see  them  in  the  light  of  theoretic  generalisations. 
Hence  the  great  bulk  of  mediaeval  philosophical  speculation 
has  no  interest  for  him.  He  admits,  however,  that  Scotus  and 
Thomas  may  have  had  a  message  for  their  own  ages,  and  where 
they  derived  their  ideas  from  antiquity,  may  still  serve  some 
useful  purposed  In  the  region  of  "natural  philosophy"  he 
writes  sarcastically  of  the  men  who  talked  as  if  they  were 
peculiarly  admitted  into  the  secrets  of  the  "  Architect  of  the 

^  Cp.  Paulsen,   Class.   Unierricht,  p.    107,    no,  for  the  popularity  of 
this  text-book  in  German  schools  at  the  beginning  of  the  i6th  cent. 
2  Op.  iii.  704-5. 


The  Place  of  Greek  135 

Universe,"  discoursing  of  the  causes  "  obviously  inexplicable," 
of  the  motions  of  the  heavenly  bodies,  of  the  origin  of 
thunder,  of  the  winds,  of  eclipses,  or  go  on  further  still  to 
"primae  materiae  quidditates,  ecceitates,  phenomena  so  fine 
and  so  intangible  that  Lynceus  himself  would  hardly  detect 
their  presence'."  All  this,  of  course,  is  merely  evidence  of 
speculative  interests  and  of  his  unwillingness  to  make  the 
necessary  effort  to  go  below  the  surface  of  a  subject  prima 
facie  repellent  to  his  genius.  He  refers  to  Aristotle,  Plato,  and 
Plutarch  as  philosophers  to  be  read  upon  education ;  but 
apart  from  his  debt  to  the  latter  writer  he  has  in  reality  drawn 
very  little  from  Greek  sources  upon  the  subject^. 

§  8.     Greek  Studies,  and  the  Argument  for  them. 

It  was,  perhaps,  amongst  the  more  important  results  of  his 
first  visit  to  England  that  Erasmus  returned  to  Paris  with  the 
single  determination  to  qualify  himself  to  read  the  Greek 
authors  at  first  hand.  It  is  at  that  time  that  we  find  him  using 
such  expressions  as  this  :  "  Sine  quibus  (sc.  literis  graecis) 
caeca  est  omnis  eruditio  "  ;  "  hoc  unum  expertus  video,  nuUis 
in  literis  nos  esse  aliquid  sine  Graecitate.  Aliud  enim  est 
conjicere,  aliud  judicare,  aliud  tuis,  aliud  alienis,  oculis  cre- 
dere^"  A  few  years  later  he  has  no  doubt  that,  "ex  institute 
omnis  fere  rerum  scientia  a  Graecis  auctoribus  petenda  est," 
and  that :  "  imprimis  ad  fontes  ipsos  properandum,  id  est 
Graecos  et  antiquos*."     It  is  impossible  for  a  teacher,  there- 

^  Op.  iv.  462,  3. 

■^  De  Christ.  Matrim.,  Op.  v.  713  c.  The  Republic,  and  the  Laws,  of 
Plato,  the  Politics,  vii.  and  viii.  of  Aristotle,  are  the  works  named.  There 
are  in  reality  no  traces  of  any  influence  of  the  Republic  upon  Erasmus; 
Sadoleto,  on  the  other  hand,  has  seized  certain  salient  characteristics  of 
the  Platonic  education  with  some  precision. 

^  Op.  iii.  968  D,  96  B. 

*  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  §  3.  The  specific  authors  to  be  used  in  edu- 
cation have  been  enumerated  above,  p.  112. 


136  The  Liberal  Studies 


fore,  to  attain  competency  in  his  profession  without  a  working 
knowledge  of  Greek.  The  argument  for  Greek  is  two-fold. 
In  the  first  place  the  Greek  literature  contains  the  fullest  know- 
ledge in  all  departments  of  human  learning  yet  available. 
Melanchthon  made  this  claim  for  the  study  of  Greek  in  his 
address  upon  Studies  at  Wittenberg  in  15 18'.  If  we  consider 
the  level  of  political,  mathematical,  and  scientific  knowledge 
attained  at  this  date,  it  is  probably  quite  true  to  fact  that  the 
Greek  world,  say  in  the  Augustan  period,  had  reached  a  degree 
of  enlightenment  wholly  in  advance  of  anything  which 
northern  Europe  could  show.  But  the  humanist  had  a 
second  argument.  The  Roman  of  the  great  age  had  based 
higher  education  upon  the  interdependence  of  Greek  and 
Roman  letters.  Cicero  urges  his  son  Marcus  when  at  Athens 
never  to  separate  the  study  of  the  two  languages^.  Quintilian 
presses  the  same  advice  upon  the  student  of  orator}'.  The 
Latin  Fathers,  Jerome  at  their  head,  are  witnesses  to  the 
educational  importance  of  a  knowledge  of  Greek,  whether  in 
respect  of  learning  or  of  expression.  The  dependence  of 
literary  form,  of  mythology,  of  vocabulary,  as  developed  in 
Rome,  upon  Greek  sources,  revealed  itself  to  the  humanist 
scholar  in  the  first  steps  that  he  made  in  the  acquisition  of  the 
Greek  tongue. 

Professional  studies,  notably  theology  and  medicine,  have, 

^  Melanchthon,  De  CorrigendJs  Adolescent  in  m  Sludiis  (Aug.  15 18):  in 
Corpus  Reformatorum  xi.  15 — 25.  Not  only  for  proper  understanding  of 
Grammar  and  Rhetoric,  but  for  Philosophy,  Natural  Science,  History  arid 
Theology,  is  Greek  indispensable.  The  reputation  for  coarseness  under 
which  Germany  suffers  can  best  be  removed  by  the  civilising  influence  of 
Greek  learning.  Cp.  Eras.  De  Kat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  164,  § 3.  "I  affirm  that 
with  slight  qualification  the  whole  of  attainable  knowledge  lies  enclosed 
within  the  literary  monuments  of  ancient  Greece." 

^  Upon  the  relation  of  Greek  to  Roman  education  in  the  Augustan  age, 
see  Rossignol,  U Education  chez  les  ancicns,  pp.  170  and  234.  Quint.  Instil. 
Oral.  I.  i.  12.  Cp.  Eras.  Op.  i.  922  f  :  Utriusque  linguae  peritiam  exacte 
perdiscat  teneris  slatim  annis. 


Greek  in  Schools  137 

says  Erasmus,  suffered  grievously  from  the  lack  of  knowledge 
of  Greek  on  part  of  the  experts.  The  same  is  true  of  mathe- 
matics. Hence  not  only  must  the  Greek  Testament  be  read 
in  the  original,  but  Origen  and  Chrysostom  ;  the  Paduan  and 
Salernitan  masters  of  medicine  must  be  corrected  by  a  first- 
hand acquaintance  with  Galen,  Hippocrates,  and  the  physical 
writings  of  Aristotle.  Indeed,  he  hopes  that  the  time  will 
soon  be  come  when  a  medical  man  will  be  disqualified  by 
ignorance  of  Greek'. 

There  were  many  practical  difficulties  in  the  school  teaching 
of  Greek.  Texts  were  still  scarce ;  elementary  readers  and 
grammars  hardly  existed  at  all.  Reuchlin  and  Melanchthon 
had  to  procure  a  printer  who  would  issue  for  their  use  short 
extracts  from  Xenophon  or  Demosthenes  :  or  a  printer  was 
subsidised  to  purchase  a  Greek  fount^.  Otherwise  the  entire 
texts  for  beginners  were  of  necessity  dictated  before  being 
construed.  Melanchthon  complains  that  he  could  only  teach  a 
few  lines  at  a  time  for  this  reason.  It  is  probable  that  in  good 
German  schools,  Strassburg  or  Nuremberg,  from  two  to  four 
hours  weekly  were  given  to  the  subject.  The  upper  class 
under  Sturm,  however,  spent  a  much  longer  time  upon  Greek. 
In  most  Protestant  schools  the  Greek  Testament  formed  the 
chief  reading  book.  Melanchthon  proposed  to  take  Homer  as 
the  poet,  and  the  Epistle  to  Titus  as  the  prose  work,  in  his  first 
year  at  Wittenberg. 

Reference  has  been  made  to  the  somewhat  restricted  range 
of  Erasmus'  reading  in  Greek,  and  to  his  defective  power  of 
textual  criticism.  There  is  a  vagueness  in  his  allusions  to 
the  scope  and  method  of  Greek  studies^  which  is  in  marked 

'   Op.  ix.  84A.     Cp.  Glockner,  Erasmus,  p.  46. 

^  The  school-texts  of  the  16th  cent,  were  printed,  outside  of  Italy,  at 
Lyons,  by  Gryphius;  at  Antwerp,  by  Plantin;  at  Paris,  by  R.  Estienne 
and,  to  less  extent,  at  Basel,  Louvain  and  Deventer. 

^  For  example  it  is  doubtful  whether  Erasmus  proposed  that  Greek 
should  be  taught  colloquially.  In  any  case  such  a  method  could  not  be 
defended  on  the  same  grounds  as  conversational  Latin. 


138  The  Liberal  Studies 


contrast  to  the  precision  of  his  injunctions  upon  the  subject  of 
Latin  teaching.  Erasmus,  we  must  remember,  began  late,  and 
laboured  under  grave  disadvantages  as  a  student  of  Greek. 
He  probably  always  found  Latin  scholarship  more  congenial. 
It  is  beyond  doubt  that  he  never  attained  the  eminence  in 
Greek  which  characterised  his  contemporary  Budaeus.  Indeed, 
the  real  home  of  this  branch  of  humanist  study  was  neither 
Italy,  Germany,  nor  England,  but  France.  Guarino  and 
Aurispa,  Linacre  and  Aldus,  were  but  pioneers,  and  Erasmus' 
place  is  with  them.  French  scholars  of  the  sixteenth  century 
took  over  their  task,  and  built  up  that  elaborate  apparatus  of 
grammar  and  lexicon,  of  textual  criticism  and  of  research  in 
the  broad  field  of  "  Realien,"  which  will  always  stand  forth  as 
the  notable  contribution  of  France  to  the  cause  of  Letters. 


§  9.     Mathematics  and  Nature  Knowledge. 

The  opening  sentence  of  the  De  Ratione  Studii,  "principio 
duplex  omnino  videtur  cognitio,  rerum  ac  verborum.  Ver- 
borum  prior,  rerum  potior,"  must  not  be  taken  to  imply  that 
Erasmus  was  an  advocate  of  "  real "  studies  in  education. 
The  opposing  terms  are  drawn  from  Quintilian'  who  uses 
"res"  in  the  sense  of  "ideas,"  or  vorjfiaTa,  in  distinction  to 
names,  "verba."  The  expression  no  doubt  includes  facts  of 
nature,  but  it  includes  also  such  a  "  fact "  as  the  versatility  of 
the  god  Mercury,  or  that  "friendship  between  equals  is  the 
more  durable." 

The  study  of  facts  is  by  Erasmus  not  differentiated  into 
systematic  branches  of  knowledge.  Natural  science,  descrip- 
tions, travellers'  tales,  traditional  lore,  mathematics,  astrology, 

^  Ins/.  Orat.  x.  It  has  been  well  remarked  by  Bassi  that  Quintihan's 
authority  became  almost  pontifical  for  Italian  and  German  humanists.  To 
dififer  from  him  needed  high  moral  courage.  Rivista  di  Filol.  e  if  Instr. 
Class.,  xxii.  7 — 9. 


The  Place  of  Real  Studies  139 

geography,  medical  rules,  tend  to  merge  into  one  another,  and 
are  classed  under  the  common  term  "res."  Their  understand- 
ing is  wholly  dependent  upon  thorough  training  in  language — 
for  without  vocabulary  neither  names  nor  epithets  can  be 
appropriately  given  :  without  arts  of  exposition  and  description 
neither  due  appreciation  nor  record  of  facts  is  possible. 
Hence  language  study  must  precede  any  attempt  at  "eruditio." 
For  lack  of  Letters  knowledge  has  wholly  decayed  :  without  a 
highly  developed  language  the  enquirer  is  deprived  of  the  only 
means  of  (a)  acquisition,  {b)  expression,  (c)  analysis,  (d)  ex- 
position, of  learning. 

Concerning  the  function  of  "  eruditio "  {Sachkenntnis) 
Erasmus  holds  a  somewhat  uncertain  position.  He  is,  in  the 
first  place,  fully  alive  to  the  importance  of  "  information  "  as 
part  of  the  equipment  for  life.  But  he  is  of  opinion  that  this 
must  be  secured  after  the  liberal  education  proper  is  com- 
pleted, and  the  wide  outlook  of  adult  life  reached.  Yet  he 
sees  the  importance  of  a  judicious  intermingling  of  teaching 
concerning  plants,  animals,  geographical  and  other  natural 
phenomena,  with  classical  instruction.  Pictures,  charts,  maps, 
even  real  objects,  as  in  gardens,  are  of  great  help  in  such 
lessons,  which  arouse  interest  and  impart  a  perception  of  the 
varied  content  of  learning  to  which  language  affords  the  key. 
Nowhere,  however,  does  Erasmus  hint  that  observation  or 
intercourse  can  serve  as  a  substitute  for  ancient  authorities  in 
any  subject,  although  occasionally  a  traveller  or  a  modem 
writer  may  supplement  what  has  been  handed  down  ;  and  in 
archaeology,  inscriptions,  statues,  coins  and  ruins  may  appro- 
priately be  worked  in.  Erasmus  has  given  a  list  of  the 
authors  in  whose  writings  such  knowledge  of  "  res  "  can  be 
found,  though  he  admits  that  the  list  is  not  complete.  It  will 
serve  to  indicate  the  scope  of  real  studies  as  understood  by 
Erasmus.  The  writers  are  Pliny,  Macrobius,  Eratosthenes, 
Athenaeus,  and  Gellius,  in  respect  of  general  subject-matter. 
In    connection    with     Geography    or     Cosmography,     Pliny, 


140  The  Liberal  Studies 

Ptolemy,  Pomponius  Mela,  and  Strabo ;  with  Mythology, 
Homer,  Hesiod,  Ovid  eked  out  with  Boccaccio  de  Genealogia 
Deorum,  Philosophy  will  be  read  in  Plato,  Aristotle,  Theo- 
phrastus,  Plotinus ;  Theology  in  Origen,  Chrysostom,  Basil, 
Ambrose,  and  Jerome  \  Augustine  takes  a  subordinate  place 
with  Erasmus.  It  is  curious  that  in  the  De  Ratio7ie  Shidii  he 
makes  no  reference  to  historical  study  in  this  connection. 
Whatever  his  conception  of  the  end  of  eruditio,  it  is  obvious 
that  the  means  to  it  are  purely  literary. 

A  passage  written  towards  the  end  of  his  life  upon  the 
effect  of  right  religious  instruction  might  lead  us  to  believe  that 
Erasmus  realised  the  emotional  value  of  a  study  of  Nature  for 
the  young.  "  Eet  the  boy  learn  to  consider  the  glory  of  the 
heavens,  the  rich  harvest  of  the  earth,  the  hidden  fountains  of 
rivers  and  their  courses  hurrying  to  the  sea,  the  illimitable 
ocean,  the  countless  families  of  living  creatures,  all  created 
expressly  to  serve  the  needs  of  men^"  But  we  must  not  take 
this  very  seriously.  In  his  Letters  Erasmus  has  hardly  a 
reference  to  the  impression  made  upon  him  by  scenery ; 
neither  the  Alps  nor  the  bay  of  Naples  move  him.  On  the 
other  hand,  he  records  a  remarkable  criticism  on  a  well-known 
passage  from  Bernard  of  Clairvaux  :  "  Thou  shalt  find  many 
things  in  the  woods  that  are  not  written  in  any  book,  and  trees 
and  rocks  will  teach  thee  what  thou  canst  learn  of  no  Master ^" 
And  he  adds  that  he  himself  talks,  to  his  vast  profit,  with  the 
trees  of  the  forest.  "These,"  says  Erasmus,  "must  in  truth 
have  been  wise  trees  which  could  produce  so  wise  a  scholar : 
they  deserve  to  sit  in  the  professorial  seat  of  the  theologian,  or 
perhaps  to  be  transformed  into  nymphs,  instead  of  falling 
prone  upon  the  hills,  or  serving  to  fatten  swine.  What  can 
men  learn  from  /r(?^i-?... Perhaps  these  are  descendants  of  the 
Tree  of  Knowledge,  or  of  those  which  followed  Orpheus ;  are 

^  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  167,  §  5,  and  elsewhere. 

^  Op.  V.  7 14  A.  3  Bernard,  Epist.  cvi. 


The  Relation  of  Words  to   Things       141 

they  perchance  philosophers  imprisoned  by  some  god  in  wood- 
land guise  ?  But,  joking  apart,  I  am  astonished  that  Bernard 
should  have  turned  to  trees  rather  than  to  men  in  his  search 
for  wisdom... Socrates  would  make  his  home  in  the  city  in 
preference  to  the  loveliest  spot  which  Greece  could  offer  him, 
just  because  he  could  learn  nothing  from  fields  and  trees. 
Does  France  then  rejoice  in  trees  more  learned  than  any  Greece 
could  show?"  There  is  only  one  way  in  which  Bernard's 
words  make  sense  :  "  he  prayed  under  the  trees,  read  there, 
pondered  there ;  there  he  wrote,  and  thought."  He  sought 
solitude  and  peace  for  purposes  of  learned  reflection,  just  as  a 
poet  may  seek  retreat  in  the  silence  of  the  woods \  But  the 
true  end  of  "  scientia  rerum  "  in  the  judgment  of  the  humanist 
is  its  use  as  an  aid  to  the  proper  understanding  of  ancient 
authors.  Facts  are  to  be  derived  from  literary  sources,  and  in 
turn  they  are  to  be  employed  in  the  illustration  of  literature. 
Erasmus,  indeed,  has  a  philosophy  of  speech  of  his  own, 
suggested  by  the  Craiylus,  but  very  imperfectly  worked  out,  by 
which  the  relation  of  words  to  the  things  signified  was  in- 
herent and  fixed^.  Onomatopoeic  words  are  by  no  means  the 
only  group  which  illustrates  this  hidden  truth.  "  If  there  be  / 
not  a  traceable  likeness  between  the  word  and  the  object  or  ^ 
action  which  it  symbolises,  then  there  is  some  invisible  reason 
why  such  object  or  action  is  named  by  the  word  which  ex- 
presses it... Words  which  express  softness  or  slowness  prefer  an  L 
sound,  lenis  and  lain  are  examples ;  size,  on  the  other  hand,  ^/' 
appropriates  the  M  sound,  for  that  of  all  letters  takes  up  most 
room  {Magnus,  /xeyas)."  Which  only  shows  that  Erasmus 
could  take  rank  with  the  most  whimsical  of  mediaevalist 
grammarians  when  he  chose.  But  he  stands  on  wholly 
different  ground  when  he  insists  upon  the  importance  of 
accurate  and  extensive  knowledge  of  names  and  epithets  in 
the  understanding  of  things  ^     Modern  grammarians,  he  says, 

'  Op.  X.  1742  E — 1743  B.  "^  Op.  i.  930c. 

3  Op.  V.  958  D. 


\ 

"7> 


142  The  Liberal  Studies 

ignore  this ;  and  their  pupils  grow  up  wholly  deficient  in 
vocabulary  for  use.  Wherefore  Erasmus  urged  the  value  of 
direct  object-teaching,  as  in  the  famous  instance  of  the 
Convivium  Religiosiim\  where  the  garden,  the  aviary,  and  the 
walls  of  the  terrace  walks  are  used  to  impart  nature  knowledge. 
There  each  plant  had  its  right  name,  with  fitting  motto  or 
proverb  attached,  and  strange  beasts  were  depicted  for  the 
instruction  of  the  household  and  its  guests.  The  same 
method  was  advised  by  him  also  in  the  teaching  of  children 
in  school ;  we  have  an  illustration  in  the  picture  of  the  fight 
between  the  elephant  and  the  dragon,  "  the  large  Indian 
variety,"  described  in  the  De  Fueris^.  But  the  aim  of  such 
methods  is  not  the  imparting  of  facts,  of  the  real  knowledge  of 
the  things  concerned,  to  serve  as  the  material  for  reflection 
upon,  and  generalisation  from,  phenomena,  and  as  the  found- 
ation of  powers  of  framing  concepts  of  natural  law.  What  is 
primarily  sought  is  the  acquisition  of  exact  terminology,  in 
accord  with  current  popular  knowledge.  Such  general  inform- 
ation served  its  main  purpose  in  enabling  the  learner  to 
appreciate  intelligently  the  similes  or  metaphors  of  an  ancient 
poet.  This  is  the  argument  proposed  for  "  eruditio  "  in  the 
£>e  Ratione  Studii.  "Astrology  is  futile  in  itself,  but  is  the 
key  to  many  allusions.  History  explains  many  references  in 
other  writings.  Indeed,  a  genuine  student  ought  to  be  able  to 
grasp  the  meaning  of  every  fact  and  idea  which  he  meets  with 
in  his  reading,  otherwise  their  Hterary  treatment  through 
epithet  or  figure  will  prove  obscure  or  confused.  There  is  no 
discipline,  no  field  of  study — music,  architecture,  agriculture, 
war — which  may  not  prove  of  use  to  the  Master  in  the  ex- 
position of  the  poets  and  orators  of  antiquity^"  So  even  right 
naming  would  appear  to  be  chiefly  of  value  in  a  literary  sense. 
A  sound  acquaintance  with  phenomena  for  their  own  sake  is 


^  Op.  i.  673  seqq.     Infra,  p.  226.  -  Infra,  p.  213,  §  30. 

3  De  Rat.  Stud.,  infra,  p.  168,  §  5. 


General  Knowledge  and  Composition      143 

not  esteemed  :  indeed,  actual  contact  with  realities  is  only  of 
use  as  enforcing  what  has  been  said  about  them  by  an  approved 
author. 

The  use  to  be  made  of  general  knowledge  in  composition  is 
treated  of  in  the  same  tract.  Quintilian^  has  a  long  section 
upon  the  relation  of  "eruditio"  to  the  Orator.  From  this  the 
Italian  humanists  drew  their  ideal  of  a  liberal  education,  as 
oratorical  skill  adorning  a  many-sided  learning.  The  educated 
man  will  be  careful  to  have  readily  available  for  oratory  or 
description'-  "all  that  varied  mass  of  material  which  the 
curiosity  of  antiquity  has  handed  down  to  us.  To  such 
belongs,  first,  the  natural  history  of  birds,  quadrupeds,  wild 
animals,  serpents,  insects,  fishes ;  this  will  be  chiefly  derived 
from  ancient  writers,  with  additions  from  our  own  observation. 
Next,  we  shall  prize  the  accounts  of  singular  ad\«entures 
handed  down  to  us  by  trustworthy  authorities,  such  as  the 
story  of  Arion  and  the  dolphin,  of  the  dragon  who  rescued  his 
deliverer  from  danger,  of  the  lion  who  returned  kindness  for 
kindness,  and  others  which  Pliny  vouches  for.  There  is  also, 
in  the  third  place,  a  vast  body  of  facts  concerning  geographical 
phenomena,  some  of  which  are  extraordinary,  and  these  are  of 
peculiar  value  to  the  scholar ;  though  even  the  usual  occur- 
rences of  nature  are  not  to  be  passed  over.  These,  again,  are 
partly  drawn  from  antiquity,  partly  are  within  our  own  ex- 
perience. I  refer  to  rivers,  springs,  oceans,  mountains, 
precious  stones,  trees,  plants,  flowers  :  concerning  all  of  which 
comparisons  should  be  derived  and  stored  away  in  memory  for 
prompt  use  in  description  or  argument.  Now,  as  certain  of  the 
illustrations  which  we  may  adduce  from  either  of  the  three 
sources  named  are  likely  to  be  challenged  as  to  their  credibility, 
we  must  prepare  ourselves  to  defend  them,  by  careful  noting 
of  the  authority  on  which  each  rests,  and  must  give  them  the 

^  Inst.  Orat.  i.  lo. 

^  Op.  i.  389  c,  u  [De  Conscribendis  Epistolis).  Erasmus  is  treating 
of  'exempla.' 


144  ^'^^  Liberal  Studies 

air  of  reality  by  the  style  in  which  we  clothe  them.  But,  in 
the  fourth  place,  we  shall  find  by  far  our  largest  supply  of 
instances  for  the  embellishment  of  discourse  in  the  sphere  of 
human  life  and  history'.  Examples  of  virtue  and  vice,  and  of 
signal  action,  drawn  from  the  annals  of  every  nation,  will  be 
watched  for,  learnt  by  heart,  and  thrown  into  suitable  literary 
form.  So  also  rites  and  ceremonies,  customs,  wonders,  institu- 
tions, all  that  is  instructive  will  be  pressed  into  use,  and  where 
the  case  demands  will  be  arranged  in  order  of  climax  that  the 
effect  may  be  the  more  striking."  He  adds  that  merchants 
and  sailors  can  often  supply  the  enquirer  with  attractive  tales 
of  strange  lands  for  similar  use*.  In  this  department  of  in- 
struction the  ideal  is  a  well-ordered  and  many-sided  learning, 
which,  in  addition  to"  other  subjects,  possesses  a  spice  of 
antiquarian  knowledge'. 

Thus  so  soon  as  Erasmus  attempts  to  come  to  close 
quarters  with  real  studies  he  finds  himself  unable  to  abandon  a 
purely  literary  attitude.  He  gives  the  first  place  amongst  them, 
perhaps,  to  Cosniographia — a  better  term  than  Geographia,  as 
it  embraces  also  the  study  of  the  heavenly  bodies.  We  see  no 
trace  of  any  interest  in  recent  over-sea  discovery.  The  subject 
ranks  as  one  of  the  mathematical  disciplines,  amongst  which 
"vix  alia  vel  jucundior  vel  magis  necessaria*."  It  is  "subtilior" 
than  grammar,  and  appeals  to  some  children— he  thinks  them 
abnormal — more  directly  than  linguistic  studies.  Probably  by 
"subtilior"  he  means  "recondite,"  "abstract";  and  implies 
his  own  ignorance  of  the  subject.  But  a  boy  with  a  taste  for 
it  should  not  be  debarred  from  pursuing  the  subject  by  aid  of 
Ptolemy  and  the  rest".  It  is  very  doubtful  if  Erasmus  had  the 
faintest  idea  of  the  use  to  which  an  educated  man  would  put 

^  Upon  this  method  of  regarding  history  as  a  series  of  striking  incidents 
and  characters,  cf.  supra,  p.  131,  and  Woodward,   Vittorino,  p.  216. 
2  Op.  i.  390  A.  »  Op.  X.  1735  E. 

*  Op.  i.  923  A  "prius  perdiscat  accurate,"  Op.  iii.  1461  E. 
"  Op.  i.  5 IOC 


Mathematical  Disciplines  145 

geographical  knowledge  if  he  had  it,  excepting  always  as  illus- 
tration of  classical  monuments.  In  the  disturbed  and  perilous 
condition  of  the  age  the  study  of  a  map  will  serve  as  a  useful 
substitute  for  traveP. 

There  is,  however,  from  the  literary  standpoint  much  to  be 
said  for  Geography.  It  is  of  great  use  in  reading  histories, 
hardly  less  in  reading  poets ^  The  geography  of  the  Holy 
Land  and  Asia  Minor  has  the  added  interest  of  association 
with  Scripture  ^  What  is  learnt,  especially  all  ancient  names, 
must  be  learnt  accurately.  The  writers  to  be  relied  upon  are 
Mela,  Pliny,  and  Ptolemy ;  the  latter  is  "  the  most  learned  of 
all  geographers  ^" 

The  remaining  mathematical  disciplines  are  very  briefly 
dismissed  by  Erasmus.  "  Arithmeticen,  Musicam  et  Astrolo- 
giam  degustasse  sat  erit*."  As  regards  the  first.  Arithmetic 
was  invariably  excluded  by  humanists  from  the  liberal  arts. 
It  was  in  a  most  rudimentary  stage,  and  the  effect  of  the 
■adoption  of  Arabic  notation  had  not  made  itself  generally  felt. 
The  mercantile  use  of  numbers  was  merely  empirical,  whilst 
the  Roman  notation  was  incompatible  with  any  but  the 
simplest  processes  of  calculation. 

Upon  Music  in  education  Erasmus  had  formed  no  settled 
opinion.  He  is  aware,  of  course,  that  the  Greeks  regarded 
singing  and  playing  as  liberal  arts ;  that  they  distinguished 
between  various  Modes,  and  that  the  Dorian  approved  itself  to 
Plato.  In  a  purely  objective  way  he  recognises  the  Greek 
theory  of  the   relation  of  musical   tones  to  character :    and 

^  Op,  i.  735  A.  Elyot,  Governour  i.  76,  should  be  read  for  a  more  serious 
view  of  the  function  of  Geography,  which  he  would  have  taught  "  by  mate- 
rial figures  and  instruments." 

'^  Infra,  p.  167,  §  5. 

^  Op.  V.  79  {De  Rat.  Theologiae). 

*  Erasmus  expended  much  sarcasm  upon  certain  professors  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Louvain  who  refused  to  allow  lectures  upon  Pomponius  Mela, 
Op.  iii.  535  etc.  (to  Vives,  15 19). 

'  Op.  i.  923  A. 

w.  10 


146  The  Liberal  Studies 

records  that  there  were  writers  who  thought  it  an  offence 
against  the  law  to  introduce  a  new  mode  not  in  accord  with 
the  temper  of  the  State.  In  considering  the  popular  music  of 
his  own  day  Erasmus  finds  grave  fault  with  the  new  songs 
which  were  being  turned  out,  in  Flanders,  in  great  numbers,  and 
caught  the  ear  of  the  uneducated.  These  are,  he  complains, 
bad  in  motive,  in  composition,  and  in  allusions.  Girls  even 
learn  to  sing  these  unworthy  and  corrupting  airs :  and  there 
are  fathers  who  encourage  their  children  in  the  practice.  He 
would  like  to  see  authors  and  printers  of  such  songs  punished 
by  law. 

Erasmus  is  not  only  concerned  at  the  words :  the  action 
which  accompanies  the  air  is  indelicate  and — here  he  is  nearer 
the  Platonic  principle — the  very  music  itself  is  trivial  and  de- 
basing. He  objects  particularly  to  'tibiae  Corybanticae,' and 
banging  cymbals,  to  the  sound  of  which  young  girls  are  made 
to  dance  by  parents  who  are  too  dense  to  see  the  moral 
danger  incurred.  He  deplores  also  the  intrusion  of  worthless 
music  into  the  services  of  the  Church,  where  solemn  and 
dignified  melodies  alone  are  in  place.  This  barren  treatment 
of  the  subject  contrasts  with  the  serious  consideration  of  the 
place  of  music  in  education  given  to  it  by  the  Italian  educators 
from  Vittorino  down  to  Sadoleto'. 

Astrology  was  in  itself  a  futile  study ;  the  point  of  view 
which  characterised  nearly  every  humanist  from  Petrarch 
downwards.  But,  like  Aeneas  Sylvius,  Erasmus  thinks  that  the 
student  should  have  some  acquaintance  with  it,  Aeneas  be- 
cause political  adventures  often  turn  on  some  "  conjunction," 
Erasmus  because  astrological  facts  crop  up  in  the  poets. 

Concerning  Geometry  in  education  there  is  nothing  to  be 
said.  In  the  De  Copia^  we  have  allusion  to  a  knowledge  of 
the  square  and  the   circle,  which   the  scholar  is  advised  to 


1  Op.  V.  717  F  etc. ;  Sadoleto,  Op.  iii.  112. 
*  Op.  i.  loi  E. 


Natural  Philosophy  147 

understand,  as  these  make  an  excellent  comparison  in  describ- 
ing "a  man  independent  of  the  variations  of  fortune."  In  this 
respect  also  Erasmus  falls  below  the  practice  of  the  earlier 
schools  of  the  Revival.  To  him  a  purely  abstract,  non-human, 
subject  could  make  no  appeal. 

Upon  the  natural  sciences  Erasmus  has,  as  we  have  seen, 
hardly  more  to  say,  so  far  at  least  as  regards  their  educational 
function.  He  does  not  recognise  them  as  organised  knowledge. 
The  nearest  approach  which  he  makes  to  such  admission  is 
this ' :  "  nonnuUus  et  Physices  praebebitur  gustus,  non  tantum 
eius  quae  de  principiis,  de  prima  materia,  de  infinito  ambitiose 
disputat,  sed  quae  rerum  naturas  demonstrat.  Quae  res  agitur 
in  libris  de  anima,  de  meteoris,  de  plantis,  de  animalibus." 
No  doubt  he  is  referring  to  Aristotle  as  the  source  of  all 
physical  knowledge :  the  rudiments  of  it  are  to  be  carefully 
reduced  to  compendia,  and  acquired  before  the  eighteenth 
year.  The  context  (the  Dialogus  De  Pronunciatione)  renders 
it  highly  probable  that  he  has  in  mind  the  literary  utility  of 
such  information.  It  was  the  subject  of  two  of  the  Colloquies^. 
These,  however,  treat  of  "  physica  "  from  the  point  of  view  of 
instructive  amusement.  One  turns  upon  the  "amicitiae  et 
inimicitiae  rerum "  by  which  all  phenomena  are  governed. 
Empedocles  and  Pliny  arfe  pressed  into  service,  with  tales 
from  ancient  sources  concerning  dolphins,  crocodiles  and 
ichneumons.  The  second  dialogue  discourses  of  the  gravity 
of  bodies,  in  a  spirit  characteristic  rather  of  the  mediaeval 
philosopher.  "  There  is  nothing  in  nature  so  heavy  as  that 
which  is  solid  enough  to  depress  beings,  compacted  of  light 
and  air,  from  the  summit  of  all  things  to  the  uttermost  depths." 
"Presumably;  and  what  is  that  called?"  "Sin,  which  dragged 
down  Satan  to  the  abyss."  Next  to  their  value  as  literary 
adornment,  natural  phenomena  had  interest  for  Erasmus  as 

'  Op.  i.  923  A. 

'^  The  Colloquies  &Vi\\\\&AAmicitia2cadiProblema :  in  Bailey's  Translation, 
ii.  300,  316. 


148  The  Liberal  Studies 

analogies  and  parables  for  moral  edification.  "Nightingales^ 
sing  with  such  exuberance  of  spirit  that  they  die  com- 
peting with  one  another,  and  prefer  death  to  relinquishing 
their  song.  Let  men  take  warning  from  them,  lest  in  an 
inordinate  desire  to  excel  they  sacrifice  their  health  and  even 
life  itself." 

In  truth,  studies  based  on  natural  science  in  the  fifteenth 
and  sixteenth  centuries  lacked  the  indispensable  qualifications 
of  instruments  of  instruction  for  the  young.  They  had  in  most 
cases  neither  certainty,  nor  precision,  nor  organisation  as  teach- 
ing material.  Apart  from  the  mathematical  basis  upon  which 
certain  of  them  rested,  they  were  but  collections  of  "  interest- 
ing information,"  or  "useful  knowledge."  In  no  way  were  they 
comparable,  as  apparatus  for  teaching,  with  the  rigid  and  highly 
elaborated  subjects  of  grammar  and  rhetoric. 

One  further  allusion  to  an  educational  instrument,  technical 
in  nature,  may  here  be  quoted^  "  It  will  be  of  advantage  to 
the  boy  of  expectations  and  of  station  to  learn  something  of 
the  mechanic  arts  upon  their  less  undignified  side,  for  example, 
painting,  sculpture,  modelling,  architecture.  The  philosophers 
would  not  approve :  but  we  Christians  cannot  scorn  manual 
activities  when  we  recollect  that  our  Lord  Himself,  the  Son 
of  a  carpenter,  was  brought  up  as  a  carpenter  Himself.  Such 
crafts  as  I  refer  to  fill  up  leisure,  and  in  case  of  need  they  may 
afford  a  livelihood."  From  the  tone  of  the  passage  we  may 
doubt  whether  Erasmus  had  much  more  feeling  for  Art  than 
he  has  for  Poetry. 

§  10.     The  Education  of  Girls. 

In  the  republic  of  Letters  neither  nationality,  age,  nor  sex 
constituted  a  bar  to  the  rights  of  citizenship.  The  Italian 
humanists  had  effectively  claimed  for  women  the  right  to  educa- 
tion in  liberal  studies,  and  had  established  thereby  their  status 

^  From  the  Similia,  Op.  i.  614  D.     Cp.  infra,  p.  189.        -  Op.  v.  716B. 


The  Education  of  Girls  149 

in  cultivated  society.  A  woman,  not  less  than  a  man,  could  in 
the  Italy  of  the  Renaissance  stand  forth  independently  in  right 
of  virtii  or  personal  distinction '.  Erasmus  records  that  he  was 
won  over  to  this  view  by  his  intercourse  with  Thomas  More 
and  his  household  ^  Thereafter  he  fought  strenuously  in  de- 
fence of  the  educated  woman.  He  thus  took  a  further  and 
most  significant  step  forwards  in  his  progress  from  mediaevalism. 
It  is  characteristic  of  Erasmus  that  he  should  pillory  the  antago- 
nists of  enlightenment  for  women  in  the  person  of  a  certain 
Abbot  Antronius.  "Women,"  so  he  opines,  "have  nothing 
to  do  with  wisdom;  it  is  their  one  business  to  be  pleasing.... 
I  should  be  very  sorry  to  see  the  brethren  of  my  House  showing 
interest  in  books ^" 

No  doubt  Erasmus — here  again  obeying  his  usual  instinct — 
was  moved  to  adopt  a  new  point  of  view  as  the  result  of  actual 
experience  of  the  falsity  of  "  the  universal  opinion  that  learning 
detracts  from  the  repute  and  good  manners  of  a  woman." 
Observation  showed  him,  on  the  contrary,  that  there  is  no 
such  foe  to  moral  fibre,  whether  in  boy  or  girl,  as  idleness  or 
triviality  of  interest.  Absorption  in  learned  studies  is  the 
remedy  against  both  in  a  far  greater  degree  than  needlework 
— the  approved  pursuit  for  a  girl — which  mostly  leaves  the 
intelligence   unoccupied.      Character  in   fact   is   only   rightly 

*  Burckhardt,  Civilisation  of  the  Renaissance,  p.  396  (Eng.  trans.): 
"The  Education  given  to  women  in  the  upper  classes  was  essentially  the 
same  as  that  given  to  men.  The  Italian,  at  the  time  of  the  Renaissance, 
felt  no  scruple  in  putting  sons  and  daughters  alike  under  the  same  course 
of  literary  and  even  philological  instruction.... The  educated  woman,  no 
less  than  the  man,  strove  naturally  after  a  characteristic  and  complete 
individuality."  The  entire  chapter  deserves  careful  study.  Cp.  La  Vita 
Jtaliana  nel  Rinascimento,  p.  98,  "La  donna  Fiorentina,"  by  Del  Lungo; 
Mrs  Abdy's  Isabella  D'Este;  and  the  tract  by  L.  Bruni  in  Woodward, 
Vittorino  da  Feltre,  p.  119.  In  any  study  of  the  education  of  women  in 
modern  times  the  Italian  ideal  of  the  Quattrocento  must  be  the  starting- 
point. 

^  Op.  iii.  769  D.     For  Mere's  influence,  cp.  supra,  p.  45. 

*  Op.  i.  745  F ;  the  Colloquy  Erudita  Ptiella. 


150  The  Liberal  Studies 

ensured  when  it  is  based  upon  thought  and  free  power  of 
judgment,  and  for  such  intellectual  exercise  serious  culture 
provides  the  material.  It  is  preposterous  to  imagine  that 
idleness  and  seclusion  are  the  right  prescription  to  secure 
virtue ;  the  full  and  effective  education  of  a  girl  is  not  a 
merely  negative  thing\  Does  anyone  think  that  a  girl  can  be 
"  cooped  up  with  foolish  and  empty-headed  women  "  and  not 
learn  mischief?  a  knowledge  of  evil  will  come  to  her  more 
surely  so  than  by  healthy  human  converse  in  society.  Only 
a  man  who  is  himself  an  ignoramus  will  affirm  that  "a  learned 
woman  is  twice  a  fooP."  The  position  taken  by  Erasmus, 
with  his  customary  practical  sense,  is  that  all  must  accept  the 
argument  that  a  woman  should  be  trained  to  fill  her  natural 
place  in  society,  as  daughter,  wife,  and  mother.  It  is  evident, 
then,  that  an  educated  young  woman  is  an  ornament  to  her 
father's  home.  The  daughters  of  Sir  Thomas  More",  in  whose 
house  Erasmus  was  a  welcome  guest,  and  of  Paumgarten,  and 
the  sisters  of  Bilbald  Pirckheimer,  are  conspicuous  examples. 
Such  studious  women  remind  us  of  Paulla,  Marcella,  and 
Eustochium,  the  lights  of  the  circle  which  gathered  round 
St  Jerome.  1  he  well-educated  wife,  again,  can  safely  claim : 
"et  conjugem  mihi  et  me  illi  cariorem  reddit  eruditio*."  It 
is  obvious  to  Erasmus  that  durable  affection  must  be  based 
upon  such  equality  of  interests  :  "it  is  real  happiness  for  a  man 
to  live  with  a  cultured  and  intelligent  spouse."  A  wife  honours 
her  husband  more  sincerely  when  her  training  has  rendered 
her  capable  of  appreciating  and  imitating  his  true  excellence. 
Without  a  head  well-skilled  to  keep  her  home  in  order,  and  to 
respond  to  her  husband's  higher  tastes,  she  will,  in  spite  of 
good  intentions,  fail  as  a  wife.  On  the  other  side,  a  woman  of 
sound  intelligence — so  the  husband  will  discover — is  easier  to 
guide ;  for  there  is  nothing  so  hard  to  control  as  ignorance,  in 


Op.s.  744E.  -  Ibid.  746  B. 

Op.  iii.  678  e;  iii.  1482  F;  iii.  196  E.  *  Op.  i.  746  A. 


The  Education  of  Girls  151 

dealing  with  which  reason  and  argument  are  of  no  avail.  "*A 
wonderful  sermon,'  says  the  average  woman,  as  she  comes  out 
of  church  :  voice  and  gesture  are  all  that  she  thinks  about ; 
whether  the  preacher  had  anything  to  say  does  not  interest 
her."  Then  Erasmus  is  concerned  with  the  relation  of  girls' 
education  to  their  subsequent  efficiency  in  the  bringing  up  of 
their  children.  It  is  clear  that  the  intense  distrust  which  he 
felt  in  respect  of  female  influence  is  directly  due  to  his  con- 
tempt for  the  ordinary  training  of  the  women  of  his  day.  That 
same  lack  of  serious  interests  and  discipline,  which  he  else- 
where remarks,  must  react  with  most  disastrous  effect  upon 
their  function  as  the  guardians  of  the  young.  Capriciousness, 
hasty  temper,  childish  vanity,  are  the  results  of  a  frivolous 
up-bringing,  and  produce  like  effects  upon  the  next  generation. 
The  only  resource  in  such  a  case  is  that  the  father  shall  de- 
cisively take  the  whole  responsibility  of  the  children  .out  of 
hands  so  unfitted  for  it.  The  lot  of  girl-children,  unfortunately, 
is  less  easily  settled  by  such  a  method \ 

How  Erasmus  treats  of  early  care  for  health,  good  manners, 
character  and  religion,  has  been  discussed  already.  When  he 
comes  to  speak  of  the  actual  content  of  a  girl's  education  upon 
its  literary  side,  he  is  unable  to  lay  down  any  rule  because,  as 
he  says,  circumstances,  individual  and  social,  are  much  varied*. 
We  may,  perhaps,  add  as  another  reason,  that  Erasmus  had 
no  knowledge  of  the  actual  conditions  of  the  problem.  He 
was  a  celibate,  a  monk,  with  extremely  few  opportunities  of 
seeing  or  sharing  in  young  society.  Hence  his  advice  is  largely 
negative.  But  even  so  it  is  that  of  a  shrewd  mind.  He 
denounces  fashionable  society-education  for  girls.  The  ideal 
set  before  women  was  a  poor  thing,  just  subservience  to  con- 
vention.    But  the  first  duty  of  the  educator  is  to  train  every 

^  Cf.  supra,  p.  91. 

^  op.  V.  716  D.  But  he  has  no  doubt  that  "nothing  is  more  conducive 
to  true  refinement  and  moral  integrity  of  disposition  than  a  classical 
education." 


152  The  Liberal  Studies 

one  to  exercise  their  free  will,  and  to  make  rational  choice  in 
the  affairs  of  life.  Again,  such  an  unworthy  aim  in  education, 
as  that  alluded  to,  is  in  practice  quite  compatible  with  acquaint- 
ance with  evil,  gained  from  vulgar  humour  or  conversation  at 
home.  "  In  an  ordinary  town-house  of  well-to-do  people  the 
day  begins  with  hair-dressing  and  rouging;  formal  attendance 
at  public  worship  follows,  for  the  sake  of  seeing  and  being 
seen :  then  comes  breakfast.  Gossip  and  the  lightest  of 
'literature'  fill  up  the  morning  until  dinner.  The  afternoon 
is  occupied  by  promenades,  and,  for  the  young  people,  games 
sadly  lacking  in  decorum.  Then  more  gossip  and  supper. 
It  is  no  better  when  the  family  moves  to  the  country,  where 
amid  idle  days,  the  crowd  of  retainers,  lackeys,  and  serving- 
girls,  is  a  standing  influence  for  evil.  How  different  is  such  an 
environment  for  a  young  girl  from  that  careful  supervision 
which  Aristotle  commands ^" 

Erasmus  is  anxious  that  the  home  surroundings  of  children 
should  invariably  be  cheerful,  full  of  affection,  according  wise 
liberty.  But  he  reminds  parents  that  the  "  reverentia  "  due  to 
boys  is  doubly  due  to  their  sisters.  A  lack  of  respect  for 
divine  things,  avowed  contempt  for  all  that  is  lofty  and  serious 
in  life,  above  all  questionable  humour  and  personal  self-in- 
dulgence, are  the  worst  of  examples  to  girls.  Erasmus  was 
not  unaware  at  first  hand  of  the  coarseness  of  manners  which 
marked  the  average  German  household,  especially  in  the  landed 
class. 

He  offers  one  serious  warning  upon  a  habit,  to  which  fathers 
are  prone,  of  enforcing  their  views  as  to  their  children's  future. 
In  particular  the  conventual  life  ought  not  to  be  pressed  upon 
a  boy  or  girl  just  because  such  a  vocation  would  fall  in  con- 
veniently with  the  interests  of  the  family'^.     The  right  principle 

^  Loc.  cit. 

*  Op.  V.  722  E.  He  says  that  his  example  of  the  conventual  life  is  only 
by  way  of  illustration.  The  warning  is  equally  true  of  matrimony  or  of  a 
scholar's  career,  724  B. 


The  Edtication  of  Girls  153 

is  to  follow  the  child's  bent  in  determining  his  or  her  future 
career. 

In  conclusion,  the  nature  of  the  references  which  Erasmus 
makes  to  the  whole  subject  indicates  that  he  has  in  mind  the 
education  of  the  daughters  of  the  leisured  class,  such  education 
to  be  carried  out  in  the  home,  and  certainly  not  under  the 
control  of  a  religious  Order.  In  this  he  is  in  line  with  the 
Italian  humanists,  who,  however,  had  before  them  a  far  more 
cultivated  type  of  society.  They  were  consequently  in  a  posi- 
tion to  work  out  a  curriculum  for  girls  with  more  precision,  in 
that  they  had  clearer  and  more  extended  views  of  the  status 
and  social  function  for  which  women  should  be  prepared.  It 
may  help  us  to  realise  the  gulf  between  the  society  of  a  cultured 
circle  in  Italy  and  that  of  a  smaller  Court  in  Germany  if  we  try 
to  imagine  //  Cortegiano  in  a  contemporary  northern  setting. 
Yet  the  Book  of  the  Courtier  was  composed  some  ten  years 
before  the  work  in  which  Erasmus  sets  out  his  plea  for  a  higher 
education  for  women'. 

^  Elyot's  Defence  of  Good  IVomen  was  published  two  years  before 
Erasmus  died.  He  carries  out  the  contention  of  Erasmus  concerning  the 
advantage  of  liberal  learning  to  a  wife.  Zenobia  of  Palmyra  declares  that 
she  spent  the  four  years  from  1 6  to  20  in  the  study  of  Letters,  and  specially 
of  Philosophy;  this  she  found  most  useful  in  bringing  up  her  own  children. 
She  advises  every  maiden  ro  devote  herself  before  marriage  to  the  earnest 
pursuit  of  learning.  For  "women  being  well  and  virtuously  brought  up  do 
not  only  with  men  participate  in  reason,  but  some  also  in  fidelity  and  constancy 
be  equal  to  them."  V'ives,  the  tutor  to  Mary,  daughter  of  Henry  VHI,  writes 
in  much  detail  upon  a  curriculum  for  a  girl.  He  has  a  particular  aversion  to 
the  romances  Amadis  de  Gaule,  Lancelot  of  the  Lake,  etc.,  "qui  non  minus 
aversandi  sunt  quam  vipera  et  scorpio."  He  urges  the  use  of  the  Christian 
poets:  and  an  "exigua  cognitio  naturae,"  such  as  may  be  useful  in  life. 
But  grammar  and  composition  in  Latin  are  to  be  fully  taught.  In  addition, 
he  bestows  attention  on  "res  domestica"  :  "discet  ergo  simul  literas,  simul 
lanam  et  linum  tractare,  et  quaecumque  ad  tuendam  et  regendam  domum 
sjjectant."  His  De  Institiitione  feminae  and  De  Officio  viariti  are  import- 
ant authorities  on  the  education  of  girls  as  advocated  in  the  first  half  of  the 
i6th  century  in  England. 


154  '^^^^  Liberal  Studies 


%  II.     Moral  Training:   Character  as  the  Supreme 
End  of  Education. 

The  rudiments  of  moral  training  as  set  out  by  Erasmus 
were  considered  in  an  earlier  section.  The  discipline  of  home 
life  and  the  example  there  set  are  the  vital  forces  making  for 
religion  and  character  in  the  young.  No  overt  teaching  of  duty 
can  effect  its  purpose  if  the  prime  motive  and  sanction  of  con- 
duct which  the  home  supplies  be  lacking. 

It  is  in  the  family  life  that  the  foundations  of  belief  and 
reverence  must  be  laid.  No  school  kept  by  professed  "re- 
ligious" has  like  advantage  in  this  respect.  In  the  treatise 
Upon  Christian  Marriage  (1526)  he  summarises  the  elements 
of  Christian  doctrine  which  may  be  profitably  taught  to  children 
under  the  age  of  fourteen'.  The  characteristic  note  of  this 
important  passage  is  the  sense  of  the  intimate  personal  relation 
of  the  child  to  the  Divine  Father.  The  world  of  Nature  and 
of  human  life  is  intelligible  only  in  light  of  the  beneficent 
Creator  upon  whom  the  Christian  child  must  rest  in  conscious 
dependence.  Upon  this  trust  in  the  divine  Fatherhood  must 
be  built  up  a  corresponding  faith  in  that  "  cognatio  arctissima  " 
within  which  all  Christians  ought  to  feel  themselves  united. 
Erasmus  touches  here  one  of  his  warmest  aspirations,  which 
was  to  see  an  end  put  to  those  internecine  feuds  by  which  the 
dynastic  ambitions  of  his  age  kept  Europe  in  constant  unrest, 
and  by  which  the  day  of  enlightenment,  and  of  the  human 
well-being  dependent  upon  it,  were  pushed  into  a  dim  future. 
This  conviction  of  the  divine  sanction  of  human  brotherhood 
is,  in  education,  the  connecting  link  between  religious  faith  and 
social  duty.  For  the  child  will  now  readily  understand  the 
conduct  due  towards  parents,  towards  elders,  equals,  inferiors, 
and  towards  the  poor.     In  the  home,  scripture  will  be  set  forth 

^  Op.  V.  713  E — 714  c. 


Moral  Training  155 

as  a  gallery  of  characters,  by  the  pattern  of  whose  excellence 
conduct  must  be  guided.  Especially  will  the  vices  of  lying, 
which  Erasmus  held  in  peculiar  abhorrence,  loss  of  temper, 
malice,  self-indulgence,  be  stamped  with  condemnation  as  the 
worst  of  all  faults  in  the  young.  If  a  boy  is  brought  up  at 
home,  with  such  precepts  enforced  by  right  example,  before  he 
has  completed  his  fourteenth  year  the  solid  foundations  of 
character  will  have  been  securely  laid.  His  nature — that 
primitive  human  "  Natura^ " — will  have  received  its  definite 
bent  towards  the  Good,  both  in  knowledge  and  in  action. 
Hence  the  father  will  use  his  utmost  endeavour  to  see  that 
such  a  beginning  shall  have  ample  opportunity  of  subsequent 
development  by  aid  of  sound  learning  and  wise  discipline. 
Again  does  Erasmus  affirm  with  all  earnestness  his  standing 
principle — which  runs  also  throughout  the  whole  of  the  De 
Puerls — that  such  progress  is  initially  dependent  upon  the 
condition  that  the  home  atmosphere  be  conducive  to  the  best. 
That  implies  a  high  standard  of  interests  in  conjunction  with 
a  dignified,  temperate  manner  of  life.  "  Monita  non  multa 
adjuvabunt,  si  puer  viderit  aliud  in  vita  parentum  quam  prae- 
scripserant.     Imitandi  vis  peculiariter  inest  pueris^" 

Nothing,  indeed,  is  more  significant  of  the  modern  spirit 
in  which  Erasmus  approaches  the  problem  of  education  than 
his  determination  to  regard  it  as  centring  in  the  home.  If  it 
be  true  that  a  characteristic  mark  of  a  sound  and  progressive 
culture  is  the  place  accorded  to  the  care  of  children,  then  we 
must  recognise  that  the  humanists  set  out  a  notably  high  type 
of  social  well-being.  At  no  time  in  modern  history  was  care 
for,  and  interest  in,  the  young  so  striking  a  fact  of  society 
as  in  the  Italy  of  the  Quattrocento.  The  sense  of  duty  towards 
the  child  in  respect  of  discipline,  example,  and  instruction  is 
expressed  on  every  hand.  Then  the  rights  of  the  child  to  a 
due  place  in  the  family  were  recognised  to  the  full.     Under 

^  Supra,  p.  80-1.  2  Qp  V.  714  D,  E. 


156  The  Liberal  Studies 

the  influence  of  home  guidance  obedience  to  the  outer  law 
was  gradually  resolved  into  an  inner  harmony,  a  conscious 
self-reliance,  which  in  its  course  was  developed  as  a  free  indi- 
viduality. This  was  effected  by  admitting  the  child  to  the 
normal  intercourse  of  the  family.  It  was  never  accepted  that 
a  child  should  be  confined  to  the  society  of  other  children ;  it 
was  his  acknowledged  claim  to  share  the  interests  of  his  elders, 
as  theirs  to  take  concern  for  him.  Probably  there  was  in  the 
Italy  of  that  great  epoch  no  force  so  potent  for  the  restraint  of 
too  exuberant  exercise  of  virtu  as  this  deep  sense  of  responsi- 
bility for  the  up-growth  of  the  children'. 

Erasmus  has  seized  this  truth.  A  celibate,  a  wanderer, 
a  man  owning  no  family  ties,  without  one  single  relative  to 
give  him  welcome,  he  has  yet  understood  the  significance  of 
the  home  as  a  positive  factor  in  education.  That  he  saw  in  it 
a  factor  also  making  for  the  good  not  of  the  child  alone  we  can 
clearly  perceive.  It  was  well  thought,  that  in  a  new  sense  of 
duty  towards  the  son  or  the  daughter  of  the  house  Erasmus 
should  find  his  most  hopeful  remedy  for  the  "  barbarism  "  in 
which  he  saw  the  German  people  sunk  in  his  day. 

Something  may  here  be  said  concerning  the  little  book  of 
manners,  which  he  published  at  Basel  in  1526,  under  the  title 
De  Civilitate  Morwn  puerilium.  It  had  great  vogue  in  the 
schools  of  the  i6th  century.  In  England  it  was  translated 
before  1532,  and  many  small  manuals  of  behaviour  were 
founded  upon  it^  We  have  evidence  that  between  1547 — 58 
no  work  of  Erasmus  was  more  in  demand  in  the  great  book 
mart  of  Germany,  Leipzig^.     The  manual  is  thoroughly  simple 

■■  It  should  be  noticed  that  the  schools  in  England  founded  under  the 
humanist  impulse  were,  in  contradistinction  to  the  pre- Renaissance  founda- 
tions, almost  exclusively  day  schools. 

^  See  Watson,  Curriculum,  pp.  8,  12.  For  the  title  of  this  and  all  other 
English  versions  of  Erasmus'  educational  books  see  infra,  p.  235. 

*  "Kirchhoff,  in  his  book  Leipziger  Sortiiuentshdndler  im  16  Jahr- 
hundert,  shows  that  in  three  years,  1547,   1551,   1558,  not  less  than  654 


Moral  Training  157 


in  style ;  it  was  expressly  written  for  boys'  use,  probably  it  was 
often  learnt  by  heart.  It  contains  the  following  chapters : 
upon  Physical  Training  and  Personal  Carriage;  upon  Dress; 
upon  Behaviour  in  Church  ;  at  Table ;  in  Company ;  at  Play ; 
in  the  Dormitory.  The  temper  of  the  book  is  admirable ;  it  is 
never  trivial,  in  spite  of  the  intimate  personal  details  into  which 
the  writer  enters.  Erasmus  desires  to  set  up  a  standard  of 
manners  to  correspond  to,  and  be  the  expression  of,  inward 
culture.  He  is  fully  aware  of  the  advantage  which  Italy  has, 
as  against  Germany,  in  this  respect.  But  the  moral  ground- 
work is  always  in  evidence :  cleanliness,  without  and  within, 
orderliness,  truthfulness,  frankness,  self-respect,  inbred  courtesy 
to  elders,  to  women  and  to  companions,  are  the  central  points 
of  the  teaching  which  the  book  conveys.  He  ends  by  a 
monition  to  the  young  Prince  Henry  of  Burgundy,  to  whom 
he  addresses  the  treatise,  a  monition  characteristic  of  the  true 
humanist :  "  I  would  by  way  of  epilogue  add  this  piece  of 
advice.  Do  not,  in  spite  of  what  I  have  written,  think  un- 
worthily of  a  school-fellow  who  may  haply  fall  short  of  your 
own  standard  of  manners.  For  there  are  many  who  nobly 
compensate  for  such  defects — due  mostly  to  circumstance — 
by  their  excellence  in  more  weighty  virtues.  Do  not  for  a 
moment  persuade  yourself  that  a  person  cannot  merit  respect 
because  he  may  lack  something  of  the  courtesies.  A  deficiency 
on  this  score  you  will  wisely  meet  at  most  by  friendly  advice ; 
never  by  superior  airs  of  reproof '." 

In  connection  Nvith  school  influences  we  may  recall  what 
Erasmus  laid  down  upon  the  choice  of  Masters.  The  example 
and  stimulus  begun  in  the  home  must  be  further  maintained 
in  the  school-room  by  the  Tutor.  One  ground  for  the  bitter 
criticism  passed  by  Erasmus  upon  the  average  master  was  the 

copies  (some  with  commentary)  of  the  De  Civilitate  yfexe  in  stock  in  Leipzig. 
No  other  of  Erasmus'  books  is  to  be  found  in  such  lists  in  equal  number." 
Glockner,  Erasmus,  p.  28  n. 

^  De  Civil.  Mor.  Pueril.,  Op.  i.  1044  A- 


158  The  Liberal  Studies 


too  common  fact  of  his  moral  worthlessness.  Ignorance,  doubt- 
less, had  much  to  do  with  the  cruelty  that  so  often  marked  his 
rule  ;  but  there  were  moral  offences  to  be  complained  of,  such 
as  drunkenness,  neglect,  and  carelessness  as  to  his  whole 
function  as  a  maker  of  character. 

We  see,  therefore,  that  Erasmus  bases  moral  training  upon 
personal  religion,  home  example  and  intercourse',  and  school 
influence.  It  is  characteristic  of  him  that  he  has  so  little 
to  say  of  the  direct  value  of  Church  ceremonies,  confession, 
the  influence  of  the  clergy,  or  of  theological  studies,  in  the 
building  up  of  character.  On  the  other  hand,  upon  the  basis 
of  wholesome  obedience  thus  established  at  home  Erasmus 
builds  up  an  edifice  of  moral  education  through  literature, 
which  it  is  important  now  to  consider.  It  has  been  already 
shown  that  in  the  reading  of  the  classical  authors  a  prominent 
place  will  be  given  to  setting  forth  the  moral  drift  of  the 
passage  studied.  Worthy  example  will  be  carefully  drawn  out, 
with  parallel  and  illustration,  and  with  application  to  modem 
instance.  But  if  the  passage  in  hand  treat  of  evil  motive  or 
action  the  Master  will  so  explain  it,  so  emphasise  the  warning 
called  for,  that  the  class  will  be  in  no  danger  of  carrying  away 
a  false  standard  of  conduct.  Erasmus  is  at  pains  to  point  out 
that  one  special  reading  of  each  lesson-portion  should,  if  the 
passage  lend  itself  thereto,  be  confined  to  the  noting  of,  and 
comment  upon,  the  moral  teaching  involved  ^  How  frequently 
does  an  author  offer  opportunity  for  such  didactic  review ! 
And  how  striking  the  effect  of  clear-cut  pictures  of  virtue  or 
vice  drawn  from  the  great  authorities  of  the  past !  Such 
"literary"  exhortation  is  described  by  Erasmus  as  "exempla," 

'  Op.  iii.  1483  A.  "  Tenera  aetas  donii  formatur  ad  omnem  probitatem 
atque  innocentiam." 

*  Op.  1.4480:  "releges  igitur  quarto,  ac  quae  ad  philosophiam,  maxime 
vero  ethicen,  referri  posse  videantur  circumspicies,  si  quod  exemplum  quod 
moribus  accommodari  possit.  Quid  autem  est  ex  quo  non  vel  exemplum 
Vivendi,  vel  imago  quaedam,  vel  occasio,  sumi  queat? 


Moral  Training  159 

i.e.  concrete  cases,  although  of  rhetorical  shape.  The  De 
Ratione  Studii  contains  instances  of  this  method,  which  is 
applicable  also  to  composition  in  Latin  and  Greek.  In  one 
of  the  Colloquies  (the  Sober  Feast)  Erasmus  handles  the 
question  of  moral  worth  as  descried  in  the  writings  of  antiquity. 
He  has  no  difficulty  in  showing  that  ancient  literature  can 
produce  types  of  character  "  of  the  very  pattern  of  Christian 
goodness."  He  compiled  also  a  collection  of  ancient  moral 
wisdom,  the  Apophthegmata  (1531),  whereby  he  "brings  forward 
the  great  figures  of  the  past  to  celebrate  the  eternal  laws  of 
right."  Special  classical  authors  are  advised  for  their  excellence 
as  aids  to  moral  training.  Plutarch  stands  first ;  indeed  he 
ranks  next  to  the  Gospels ;  as  a  moral  stimulus  to  youth  he 
will  prove  more  attractive  than  any  of  the  Christian  Fathers'. 
Basil  and  Chrysostom  learnt  much  from  Plutarch.  Then 
follow  Cicero,  Seneca,  Terence,  Demosthenes,  Vergil  and 
Tacitus.  It  is  noticeable  that  Erasmus  warns  the  Master 
against  turning  moral  teaching  into  teaching  alwut  morals : 
discussions  "  de  summo  bono,"  or  the  sanctions  of  Ethics, 
are  otiose.  The  Master  is  concerned  to  give  the  stimulus  to 
action  and  to  enforce  it  by  precedents ;  he  will  fail  in  this 
duty  if  he  allows  the  youthful  mind  to  wander  off  to  mere 
speculation. 

This  literary  treatment  of  morality,  so  objective  and  didactic, 
lends  itself  easily  to  depreciatory  criticism,  which,  however, 
fails  of  effectiveness  when  we  remember  that  Erasmus  intends 
it  as  illustration,  for  intelligent  youth,  of  precepts  imbibed  in 
the  home.  Further,  it  will  be  reinforced,  as  the  threshold  of 
manhood  is  reached,  by  a  more  intimate  intercourse  with  elders. 
The  young  man  entering  upon  direct  preparation  for  profes- 
sional life  must  be  allowed  free  choice  of  career;  a  wholly 
modern  concept,  in  which,  however,  Erasmus  sees  the  crown 
of  all  right  education.     The  development  of  individuality  must 

^  Op.  V.  856.     Cp.  Benoist,  Quid  de  pueris,  p.  131. 


i6o  The  End  of  Education 

be  watched  from  the  very  first  years  of  life.  Erasmus  con- 
stantly warns  parents  against  forcing  all  children  through  the 
same  course  ^  and  when  bent  is  fully  in  evidence  in  later 
boyhood,  they  and  the  Master  must  recognise  it  as  decisive. 
Such  freedom  of  personality  is  fully  consistent  with  a  uniform 
sense  of  public  duty,  which  should  mark  every  cultivated 
intelligence.  The  narrowing  influence  of  a  certain  type  of 
literary  education,  in  the  direction,  he  means,  of  disqualifying 
the  studious  for  active  interests  in  life,  he  much  deprecates*. 
For  "  action  "  is  the  end  of  education,  with  Erasmus  not  less 
than  with  the  great  Italian  Masters  of  the  Quattrocento.  The 
life  of  scholarship  is  only  one  small  part  of  the  career  open  to 
highly  educated  youth.  To  be  a  citizen  of  the  world,  marked 
by  a  due  consciousness  of  obligation  to  the  community  in 
which  we  are  placed,  is  the  highest  aim.  Thomas  More,  Colet, 
and  Paumgarten  are  instances.  Erasmus  is  reminded  in  his 
allusions  to  the  Paumgarten  family  of  the  value  of  Travel  in 
education :  "  adolescentia  prima  statim  ab  aedibus  paternis 
ablegatur  in  Italiam  aut  in  Galliam,  quo  simul  et  Unguis  et 
moribus  alienis  assuescant,  nihil  enim  fere  morosius  iis  qui  in 
patria  consenuerunt ;  oderunt  exteros,  ac  damnant  quicquid  a 
vernaculis  ritibus  diversum  est^"  In  this  way  the  consciousness 
of  an  "  international  solidarity  of  learning  "  was  strengthened. 
Finally,  the  higher  end  of  humanism  was  attained  when  the 
sense  of  duty  to  self,  to  the  community,  and  to  God,  was 
realised  as  the  triple  aspect  of  one  and  the  same  ideal. 

^  Op.  V.  722  D;  i.  502.     Infra,  p.  196.  *  Op.  iii.  1482F. 

3  Ibid.  1485  A. 


PART  II. 


NOTE. 

The  works  of  Erasmus  here  presented  include  the  two 
treatises  which  best  express  the  ordered  views  of  their  author 
upon  Education.  These,  with  a  portion  of  one  of  the  Collo- 
quies, are  given  in  EngHsh.  A  short  chapter  from  the  De 
Conscribendis  Epistolis  is  printed  in  the  original  Latin  with 
English  headings. 

The  tract  De  Ratione  Studii  has  not,  I  believe,  appeared 
before  in  an  English  version.  The  De  Pueris  was  translated 
by  'Rychard  Sherry,  Londoner,'  head-master  of  Magdalen 
College  School,  and  published  in  or  about  1550  by  John  Day, 
under  the  title  '  A  declamacion  That  chyldren  even  strayt  fro' 
their  infancie  should  be  well  and  gently  broughte  up  in  learnynge. 
Written  fyrst  in  Latin  by  the  most  excellent  and  famous 
Clearke,  Erasmus  of  Roterodame.'  This  was  issued  in  one 
volume,  of  which  it  forms  the  second  part,  with  a  Treatise  of 
Schemes  and  Tropes  {i.e.  figures  of  Rhetoric).  The  volume  is 
exceedingly  rare.  The  Colloquies  were  translated  by  N.  Bailey 
in  1725.  Any  compressions  noticeable  in  the  versions  as 
printed  below  are  only  by  way  of  restraint  of  Erasmian 
redundancy  of  illustration. 

In  addition  to  these  four  works  the  student  of  the  subject 
will  perhaps  find  the  following  next  in  order  of  interest : 
Christiani  Matrimonii  Institution  Op.  v.  708  B — 724.  De 
Civilitate  Morum  Puerilium,  i,  1033 — 1044.  De  Rerum 
Copia,  i.   75 — no. 

W.  II 


CHAPTER   VI. 


THE  TREATISE  OF  ERASMUS  DE  RATION E  STUDII, 
THAT  IS,  UPON  THE  RIGHT  METHOD  OF  IN- 
STRUCTION,   151 1. 

§  I.     Thought  and  Expression  form  the  Two-fold 
Material  of  Instruction.     521  a — b. 

All  knowledge  falls  into  one  of  two  divisions :  the  knowledge 
of  "  truths  "  and  the  knowledge  of  "  words  "  :  and  if  the  former 
is  first  in  importance  the  latter  is  acquired  first  in  order  of 
time.  They  are  not  to  be  corrtmended  who,  in  their  anxiety  to 
increase  their  store  of  truths,  neglect  the  necessary  art  of  ex- 
pressing them.  For  ideas  are  only  intelligible  to  us  by  means 
of  the  words  which  describe  them ;  wherefore  defective  know- 
ledge of  language  reacts  upon  our  apprehension  of  the  truths 
expressed.  We  often  find  that  no  one  is  so  apt  to  lose  himself 
in  verbal  arguments  as  the  man  who  boasts  that  facts,  not 
words,  are  the  only  things  that  interest  him.  This  goes  to 
prove  that  true  education  includes  what  is  best  in  both  kinds 
of  knowledge,  taught,  I  must  add,  under  the  best  guidance. 
For,  remembering  how  difficult  it  is  to  eradicate  early  im- 
pressions, we  should  aim  from  the  first  at  learning  what  need 
never  be  unlearnt,  and  that  only. 


De  Ratione  Studii,  521  a — 52 2  a         163 


§  2.  Expression  claims  the  first  place  in  point  of  time. 
Both  the  Greek  and  Latin  languages  needful  to 
the  Educated  Man,  521  b — c. 

Language  thus  claims  the  first  place  in  the  order  of  studies 
and  from  the  outset  should  include  both  Greek  and  Latin. 
The  argument  for  this  is  two-fold.  First,  that  withm  these  two 
literatures  are  contained  all  the  knowledge  which  we  recognise 
as  of  vital  importance  to  mankind.  Secondly,  that  the  natural 
affinity  of  the  two  tongues  renders  it  more  profitable  to  study 
them  side  by  side  than  apart.  Latin  particularly  gains  by  this 
method.  Quintilian  advised  that  a  beginning  should  be  made 
with  Greek  before  systematic  work  in  Latin  is  taken  in  hand. 
Of  course  he  regarded  proficiency  in  both  as  essential.  The 
elements,  therefore,  of  Greek  and  Latin  should  be  acquired 
early,  and  should  a  thoroughly  skilled  master  not  be  available, 
then — but  only  then — let  the  learner  fall  back  upon  self-teaching 
by  means  of  the  study  of  classical  masterpieces. 


§  3.  The  Right  Method  of  acquiring  Grammar  rests 
upon  Reading  and  not  upon  Definitions  and  Rules. 
521  c — 522  A. 

Amongst  Greek  Grammars  that  of  Theodore  Gaza  stands 
admittedly  first,  next  to  it  I  rank  that  of  Constantine  Lascaris. 
Of  the  old  Latin  Grammarians  Diomedes  is  the  soundest ; 
whilst  the  Rudimenta  of  Nicholas  Perotti  strikes  me  as  the 
most  thorough  and  most  comprehensive  of  modern  works. 
But  I  must  make  my  conviction  clear  that,  whilst  a  knowledge 
of  the  rules  of  accidence  and  syntax  is  most  necessary  to  every 
student,  still  they  should  be  as  few,  as  simple,  and  as  carefully 
framed  as  possible.  I  have  no  patience  with  the  stupidity  of 
the  average  teacher  of  grammar  who  wastes  precious  years  in 


164  De  Ratione  Studii,  522  a — e 

hammering  rules  into  children's  heads.  For  it  is  not  by  learning 
rules  that  we  acquire  the  power  of  speaking  a  language,  but  by 
daily  intercourse  with  those  accustomed  to  express  themselves 
with  exactness  and  refinement,  and  by  the  copious  reading  of 
the  best  authors. 

Upon  this  latter  point  we  do  well  to  choose  such  works  as 
are  not  only  sound  models  of  style  but  are  instructive  by  reason 
of  their  subject-matter.  The  Greek  prose-writers  whom  I 
advise  are,  in  order,  Lucian,  Demosthenes,  Herodotus :  the 
poets,  Aristophanes,  Homer,  Euripides ;  Menander,  if  we 
possessed  his  works,  would  take  precedence  of  all  three. 
Amongst  Roman  writers,  in  prose  and  verse,  Terence,  for 
pure,  terse  Latinity  has  no  rival,  and  his  plays  are  never  dull. 
I  see  no  objection  to  adding  carefully  chosen  comedies  of 
Plautus.  Next,  I  place  Vergil,  then  Horace ;  Cicero  and 
Caesar  follow  closely  ;  and  Sallust  after  these.  These  authors 
provide,  in  my  judgment,  sufficient  reading  to  enable  the  young 
student  to  acquire  a  working  knowledge  of  the  two  great 
classical  tongues.  It  is  not  necessary  for  this  purpose  to  cover 
the  whole  range  of  ancient  literature ;  we  are  not  to  be 
dubbed  "  beginners "  because  we  have  not  yet  mastered  the 
whole  of  the  Fragmenta. 

Some  proficiency  in  expression  being  thus  attained  the 
student  devotes  his  attention  to  the  content  of  the  ancient 
literatures.  It  is  true,  of  course,  that  in  reading  an  author 
for  purposes  of  vocabulary  and  style  the  student  cannot  fail  to 
gather  something  besides.  But  I  have  in  my  mind  much  more 
than  this  when  I  speak  of  studying  "contents."  For  I  affirm 
that  with  slight  qualification  the  whole  of  attainable  knowledge 
lies  enclosed  within  the  literary  monuments  of  ancient  Greece. 
This  great  inheritance  I  will  compare  to  a  limpid  spring  of 
whose  undefiled  waters  it  behoves  all  who  truly  thirst  to  drink 
and  be  restored. 


De  Ratione  Studii,  522  a — e  165 


§  4.     The  Subject-matter  and  the  Methods  which 
are  most  suitable  to  beginners.     522  a — e. 

Before  touching  upon  the  order  in  which  the  various 
disciplines  should  be  acquired,  and  the  choice  of  Masters, 
I  will  say  something  on  the  instruction  of  beginners.  In 
reading  the  authors  above  mentioned  for  the  purposes  of 
vocabulary,  ornament  and  style,  you  can  have  no  better  guide 
than  Lorenzo  Valla.  His  Elegantiae  will  shew  you  what  to 
look  for  and  note  down  in  your  Latin  reading.  But  do  not 
merely  echo  his  rules ;  make  headings  for  yourself  as  well. 
Refer  also  to  Donatus  and  Diomedes  for  syntax.  Rules  of 
prosody,  and  the  rudiments  of  rhetoric,  such  as  the  method  of 
direct  statement,  of  proof,  of  ornament,  of  expansion,  of  tran- 
sition, are  important  both  for  the  intelligent  study  of  authors 
and  for  composition.  Such  grounding  in  grammar  and  in  style 
will  enable  you  to  note  with  precision  such  matters  as  these : 
an  unusual  word,  archaisms,  and  innovations,  ingenuity  in 
handling  material,  distinction  of  style,  historical  or  moral 
instances,  proverbial  expressions :  the  note-book  being  ready 
to  hand  to  record  them.  Notes  of  this  kind  should  not  be 
jotted  down  at  hap-hazard,  but  carefully  devised  so  as  to  recall 
to  the  mind  the  pith  of  what  is  read. 

If  it  is  claimed  that  Logic  should  find  a  place  in  the  course 
proposed  I  do  not  seriously  demur ;  but  I  refuse  to  go  beyond 
Aristotle  and  I  prohibit  the  verbiage  of  the  schools.  Do  not 
let  us  forget  that  Dialectic  is  an  elusive  maiden,  a  Siren,  indeed, 
in  quest  of  whom  a  man  may  easily  suffer  intellectual  ship- 
wreck. Not  here  is  the  secret  of  style  to  be  discovered.  That 
lies  in  the  use  of  the  pen  ;  whatever  the  form,  whether  prose 
or  verse,  or  whatever  the  theme,  write,  write,  and  again  write. 
Supplement  writing  by  learning  by  heart  Upon  this  latter 
question,  memory  depends  at  bottom  upon  three  conditions : 
thorough  understanding  of  the  subject,  logical  ordering  of  the 


1 66         De  Ratione  Studii,   522  e — 523  f 

contents,  repetition  to  ourselves.  Without  these  we  can  neither 
retain  securely  nor  reproduce  promptly.  Read,  then,  atten- 
tively, read  over  and  over  again,  test  your  memory  vigorously 
and  minutely.  Verbal  memory  may  with  advantage  be  aided 
by  ocular  impressions ;  thus,  for  instance,  we  can  have  charts 
of  geographical  facts,  genealogical  trees,  large-typed  tables  of 
rules  of  syntax  and  prosody,  which  we  can  hang  on  the  walls. 
Or  again,  the  scholar  may  make  a  practice  of  copying  striking 
quotations  at  the  top  of  his  exercise  books.  I  have  known 
a  proverb  inscribed  upon  a  ring,  or  a  cup,  sentences  worth 
remembering  painted  on  a  door  or  a  window.  These  are 
all  devices  for  adding  to  our  intellectual  stores,  which,  trivial 
as  they  may  seem  individually,  have  a  distinct  cumulative 
value. 

Lastly,  I  urge,  as  undeniably  the  surest  method  of  acquisi- 
tion, the  practice  of  teaching  what  we  know :  in  no  other  way 
can  we  so  certainly  learn  the  difference  between  what  we  kno7ii, 
and  what  we  think  we  know,  whilst  that  which  we  actually 
know  we  come  to  know  better. 


§5.  Instruction  Generally:  Choice  of  Subjects  of 
Instruction.  The  Range  of  Study  Necessary  to 
A  Well-read  Master.     522  e— 523  f. 

This  brings  me  to  treat  of  the  art  of  instruction  generally, 
though  it  seems  a  mere  impertinence  in  me  to  handle  afresh  a 
subject  which  has  been  made  so  conspicuously  his  own  by  the 
great  Quintilian. 

As  regards  the  choice  of  material,  it  is  essential  that  from 
the  outset  the  child  be  made  acquainted  only  with  the  best 
that  is  available.  This  implies  that  the  Master  is  competent 
to  recognise  the  best  in  the  mass  of  erudition  open  to  him, 
which  in  turn  signifies  that  he  has  read  far  more  widely  than 
the  range  of  authors  to  be  taught  by  him.  This  applies  even 
to   the   tutor   of  beginners.     The   Master  should,    therefore, 


De  Ratione  Studii,   522  e — 523  f         167 

acquaint  himself  with  authors  of  every  type,  with  a  view  to 
contents  rather  than  to  style ;  and  the  better  to  classify  what 
he  reads  he  must  adopt  the  system  of  classifying  his  matter  by 
means  of  note-books,  upon  the  plan  suggested  by  me  in  De 
Copia.  As  examples  of  the  authors  I  refer  to  I  put  Pliny  first, 
then  Macrobius,  Aulus  Gellius,  and,  in  Greek,  Athenaeus. 
Indeed  to  lay  in  a  store  of  ancient  wisdom  the  studious  master 
must  go  straight  to  the  Greeks :  to  Plato,  Aristotle,  Theo- 
phrastus  and  Plotinus  ;  to  Origen,  Chrysostom,  Basil.  Of  the 
Latin  Fathers,  Ambrosius  will  be  found  most  fertile  in  classical 
allusions.  Jerome  has  the  greatest  command  of  Holy  Scripture. 
I  cannot,  however,  enumerate  the  entire  extent  of  reading  which 
a  competent  knowledge  of  antiquity  demands.  I  can  only 
indicate  a  few  directions  which  study  ought  to  take. 

For  the  right  understanding  of  the  poets,  the  Legends  of 
Gods  and  Heroes  must  be  mastered  :  Homer,  Hesiod,  Ovid, 
and  the  Italian  Boccaccio  should  be  read  for  this.  A  know- 
ledge of  Geography  is  of  prime  importance,  for  the  study  both 
of  ancient  poets  and  of  historians.  Pomponius  Mela  makes 
a  useful  compendium ;  Pliny  and  Ptolemy  are  learned  and 
elaborate  writers ;  Strabo  is  something  more  than  a  geogra- 
pher. This  subject  includes  two  parts,  a  knowledge,  first, 
of  the  names,  ancient  and  modern,  of  mountains,  rivers, 
cities  ;  secondly,  of  names  of  trees,  plants,  animals,  of  dress, 
appliances,  precious  stones,  in  which  the  average  writer  of 
to-day  shews  a  strange  ignorance.  Here  we  gain  help  from 
the  works  which  have  come  down  to  us  upon  agriculture,  archi- 
tecture, the  art  of  war,  cookery,  precious  stones,  and  natural 
history.  We  can  make  good  use,  in  the  same  subject,  of 
etymology  (the  name  "  unicorn  "  is  an  example).  Or  again  we 
can  trace  word-change  in  names  through  modern  Greek,  or 
Italian  and  Spanish  (Tiber,  now  "Tevere,"  is  an  example). 
I  may  say  that  modern  French  has  wandered  too  far  from  its 
classical  mother-speech  to  be  of  much  help  to  us  in  recognising 
and  identifying  ancient  names. 


1 68        De  Ratione  Studii,   523  f — 524  c 

Material  for  the  study  of  Archaeology  is  to  be  found  not 
only  in  literary  sources,  but  in  ancient  coins,  inscriptions,  and 
monuments.  Astrology — futile  as  it  is  in  itself— must  be  un- 
derstood for  the  sake  of  many  poetical  allusions.  Of  special 
importance  is  the  study  of  History,  for  its  own  sake  as  well  as 
for  the  reason  that  it  is  the  key  to  many  references  in  other 
writings.  Finally,  to  understand  such  a  poet  as  Prudentius,  the 
one  Christian  poet  of  real  literary  taste,  a  knowledge  of  Sacred 
History  is  indispensable. 

And  indeed  we  may  say  that  a  genuine  student  ought  to 
grasp  the  meaning  and  force  of  every  fact  or  idea  that  he  meets 
with  in  his  reading,  otherwise  their  literary  treatment  through 
epithet,  metaphor,  or  simile  will  be  to  him  obscure  and  con- 
fused. There  is  thus  no  discipline,  no  field  of  study,  — whether 
music,  architecture,  agriculture  or  war — which  may  not  prove 
of  use  to  the  teacher  in  expounding  the  Poets  and  Orators  of 
antiquity.  "  But,"  you  rejoin,  "  you  expect  all  this  of  your 
scholar?"  Yes,  if  he  propose  to  become  a  teacher;  for  he 
thus  secures  that  his  own  erudition  will  lighten  the  toil  of 
acquisition  for  those  under  his  charge. 


§  6.  The  Art  of  teaching  the  Rudiments  of  Language 
UP  TO  the  stage  when  Composition  is  begun. 
523  F— 524  c. 

As  regards  the  methods  of  the  rudiments — that  is,  of 
learning  to  talk  and  knowing  the  alphabet — I  can  add  nothing 
to  what  Quintilian  has  laid  down.  For  my  own  part  I  advise 
that  when  this  stage  is  reached  the  child  begin  to  hear  and 
imitate  the  sounds  of  Latin  speech.  Why  should  it  be  more 
difficult  to  acquire  Roman  words  or  even  Greek,  rather  than  the 
vernacular  ?  No  doubt  my  prescription  demands  the  environ- 
ment of  a  cultivated  home-circle.  But  the  master  may  secure 
even  under  the  conditions  of  school-life  that  boys  be  brought 


De  Ratione  Studii,  523  f — 524  c  169 

to  speak  Latin  with  precision,  if  patience  be  shown  in  encourag- 
ing and  correcting  uncertain  efforts,  and  in  insisting  upon 
careful  observation  of  the  Teacher's  own  usage.  By  degrees 
devices  for  increasing  fluency  may  be  introduced ;  as,  for 
instance,  a  game  of  forfeits  and  prizes  for  faults  and  corrections, 
the  Master  choosing  the  judges  from  amongst  the  top  boys. 
The  more  common  phrases  suitable  for  play,  for  social  life, 
for  meal-times,  must  be  early  learned  and  be  apt,  and  ready 
to  hand. 

The  time  will  now  have  come  when  the  able  teacher  must 
select  certain  of  the  more  necessary  rules  of  accidence  and 
syntax,  and  state  them  simply,  arrange  them  in  proper  order 
and  dictate  them  for  entry  in  note-books.  An  author  may 
now  be  attempted,  but  of  the  easiest  sort ;  choose  one  likely 
to  be  helpful  in  composition  and  conversation.  Through  this 
text  the  rules  just  referred  to  will  be  driven  home,  and  the 
examples  of  syntactical  usages  therein  contained  carefully 
worked  out ;  all  this  of  course  with  an  eye  to  the  later  stages 
when  regular  exercises  in  prose  and  verse  are  required. 


§  7.     The  importance  of  the  Art  of  Composition;    its 
method  set  out.     524  c — 525  c. 

When  this  time  has  arrived  care  must  be  taken  to  propound 
themes  not  only  worthy  in  subject  but  suitable,  as  being  within 
the  range  of  the  boy's  interests.  For  in  this  way  he  may 
acquire  not  only  training  in  style,  but  also  a  certain  store  of 
facts  and  ideas  for  future  use.  For  example,  such  a  subject  as 
the  following  would  prove  attractive:  "The  rash  self-confidence 
of  Marcellus  imperilled  the  fortunes  of  Rome ;  they  were 
retrieved  by  the  caution  of  Fabius."  Here  we  see  the  under- 
lying sentiment,  that  reckless  counsels  hasten  towards  disaster. 
Here  is  another :  "  Which  of  the  two  shewed  less  wisdom, 
Crates  who  cast  his  gold  into  the  sea,  or  Midas  who  cherished 


lyo         De  Ratione  Studii,   524  d — 525  f 

it  as  his  supreme  good  ?  "  Or,  "  Eloquence  too  little  restrained 
brought  Demosthenes  and  Cicero  to  their  ruin."  One  more : 
"  No  encomium  can  exceed  the  deserts  of  Codrus,  who  held 
that  the  safety  of  his  subjects  claimed  even  the  life  of  the  King 
himself"  But  Valerius  Maximus  will  provide  you  with  ample 
choice  of  such  themes.  At  first  these  may  be  set  in  the 
vernacular. 

Mythology  and  fable  will  also  serve  your  purpose.  "  Her- 
cules gained  immortal  fame  as  the  destroyer  of  monsters." 
"The  Muses  delight  in  the  fountain  and  the  grove;  they  shrink 
from  the  crowded  haunts  of  men."  "One  should  not  burden  a 
friend  with  a  difficulty  which  it  is  a  duty  to  solve  ourselves." 
"  All  men  are  conscious  of  the  wallet  which  hangs  in  front,  but 
ignore  that  which  they  carry  behind  them."  Proverb  and 
moral  will  suggest  such  themes  as  these  :  "  It  is  not  every 
one's  good  fortune  to  visit  Corinth."  "How  far  above  the  type 
of  to-day  was  he  who  counted  a  man  worthy  not  for  his  wealth 
but  for  his  manhood  !  "  "  Socrates  despises  those  who  live  in 
order  to  eat ;  he  applauds  those  who  eat  in  order  to  live." 
My  book  Adagia  will  supply  you  with  instances  enough. 
Other  themes  may  be  suggested  from  the  properties  of  natural 
objects,  such  as  the  attraction  of  the  magnet  or  the  mimicry  of 
the  polypus.  Similes,  also,  allegories,  sententious  sayings, 
smart  turns  of  expression,  will  lend  themselves  to  exercises  in 
composition.  The  Master  in  the  course  of  his  reading  will  be 
careful  to  note  instances  which  present  themselves  as  models 
suitable  for  imitation. 

The  pupil  will  now  have  attained  a  certain  facility  in 
speaking  and  in  writing  Latin.  He  will  be  ready,  therefore,  to 
proceed  to  a  more  advanced  stage  in  Grammar,  which  must  be 
learnt  by  means  of  rules  aptly  illustrated  by  quotations :  the 
rules  being  expressed  as  tersely  as  may  be  consistent  with 
clearness.  I  would  add  that  in  all  that  concerns  Greek  con- 
structions we  should  do  well  to  follow  the  guidance  of  Gaza's 
grammar. 


De  Ratione  Studii,   524  d — 525  f         171 


§  8.     The  Methods  to  be  pursued  in  writing  Advanced 
ExKRCisEs  IN  Composition.     525  c — f. 

But  I  must  repeat  that  when  once  the  simpler  rules  of 
composition,  in  prose  and  verse,  and  the  commoner  figures  of 
speech  have  been  mastered,  the  whole  stress  of  teaching  must 
be  laid  upon  a  close  yet  wide  study  of  the  greater  writers. 
Fortified  with  this  the  student  can  produce  original  work  in 
prose,  under  the  criticism  (this  is  most  important)  of  a  thoroughly 
skilled  instructor. 

Practice  in  the  epistolary  style,  both  in  Greek  and  Latin, 
may  be  gained  by  writing  to  an  argument  propounded  in  the 
vernacular.  This  will  come  first.  Then  the  whole  range  of 
rhetorical  prose  is  open  to  the  student  who  must  gain  acquaint- 
ance with  the  different  varieties  of  style ;  for  instance,  that 
demanded  in  the  production  of  the  Fable,  or  the  moral 
Commonplace,  or  the  short  Story,  or  the  Dilemma ;  the  art 
of  expressing  an  Encomium,  or  a  Denunciation  ;  a  Parallel, 
a  Simile,  a  Description.  Another  exercise  will  take  the  form 
of  paraphrasing  poetry  into  prose  and  the  reverse  process. 
There  is  also  much  advantage  in  attempting  the  same  subject, 
say  an  epistle,  in  two  diverse  styles.  Or  one  motive  may  be 
expressed  in  four  or  five  different  metres.  Further,  an  identical 
topic  may  be  propounded  both  for  verse  and  for  prose,  alike  in 
Latin  and  in  Greek.  An  affirmation  may  be  set  to  be  proved 
by  three  or  four  differing  lines  of  argument.  Perhaps  the  most 
useful  exercise  of  all  consists  in  construing  from  Greek  into 
Latin,  practice  in  which  demands  diligent  attention.  For  in 
this  exercise  we  are  committed  to  three  distinct  operations : 
first,  we  have  to  analyse  the  construction  of  the  passage  in  the 
older  tongue :  next,  we  are  forced  to  appreciate  carefully  the 
peculiar  genius  of  each  language  and  to  note  the  principles 
which  are  common  to  both  :  thirdly,  in  producing  an  accurate 
rendering  from  the  Greek  we  are  exercised  in  moving  freely 


172         De  Ratione  Stiidii,  525  f — 526F 

amidst  the  resources  of  Roman  vocabulary  and  sentence-struc- 
ture. So  exacting  a  task  claims  whatever  stimulus,  encourage- 
ment and  skilled  aid  the  master  has  to  offer  to  the  pupil; 
who  will  further  find  inspiration  in  the  reading  of  model 
passages  of  a  similar  theme  to  that  which  he  has  in  hand. 

§  9.  Original  Composition  ;  its  Variety  ;  the  Method 
OF  Aiding  the  Student;  Correction  of  Exercises. 
525   F— 526  F. 

It  is  now  time  to  call  for  original  composition :  in  which  we 
leave  the  task  of  developing  a  stated  theme  to  the  taste  and 
industry  of  the  pupil  himself.  The  right  choice  of  subjects  for 
such  exercises  is  a  test  of  the  Master's  talent.  Suppose  an 
Epistle  to  be  required,  say  of  congratulation,  or  of  condolence, 
or  expostulation,  or  of  some  other  recognised  type,  the  Master 
should  limit  himself  to  indicating  certain  characteristics  of 
structure  or  phrasing,  common  to  each  variety,  and  then  those 
which  may  be  specially  appropriate  to  the  kind  of  letter  actu- 
ally proposed.  The  same  method  will  apply  to  exercises  in 
formal  Oratory, — a  declamation  in  praise  of  Socrates,  or  in 
denunciation  of  Caesar  ;  against  reliance  on  riches,  or  in  favour 
of  Greek  Letters ;  for  the  married  life  or  against  it ;  against 
pilgrimages,  or  in  praise  of  them. 

This  will  lead  to  the  study  of  the  art  of  Oratory  as  laid 
down  by  Cicero  and  Quintilian.  For  the  subjects  proposed  as 
above  must  be  treated  in  accordance  with  accepted  methods. 
The  master  should  suggest  the  number  of  propositions  to  be 
set  out  on  a  given  theme,  of  the  arguments  to  be  employed, 
and  of  the  proofs  to  be  adduced  in  support  of  each ;  and  the 
sources  from  which  these  may  be  drawn.  This  constitutes  a 
kind  of  skeleton-form  of  the  oration,  to  be  filled  in  to  suit  the 
actual  subject  selected.  Further,  the  pupil  should  be  led  to 
consider  the  various  methods  by  which  he  may  adorn  his 
treatment   of    the    argument,    such   as    simile    and   contrast, 


De  Ratione  Studii,  525  f — 526  f  173 

parallel  cases,  moral  reflection,  adages,  anecdotes,  parables, 
and  so  on ;  and  he  should  have  some  guidance  in  choice  of 
figure  and  metaphor  as  aids  to  ornament  in  style.  In 
regard  to  the  logical  ordering  of  argument  as  a  whole,  the 
student  should  be  taught  to  attend  to  the  niceties  of  ex- 
position,—the  exordium,  the  transition,  the  peroration;  for  each 
of  these  has  its  own  peculiar  excellence,  and  each,  moreover, 
admits  of  the  merit  not  only  of  precision  but  also  of  elegance. 
Seven  or  eight  exercises  of  this  kind  done  under  careful 
supervision  should  be  sufficient  to  enable  the  pupil  to  lay  out 
matter  for  original  prose  composition  without  help.  Amongst 
suitable  subjects  for  the  purpose  are  those  drawn  from  legend 
and  ancient  history,  such  as  these :  "  Menelaus  before  a 
Trojan  assembly  claims  the  restoration  of  Helen  " ;  "  Phalaris 
presses  the  priests  of  Delphi  to  accept  his  Brazen  Bull  as  an 
offering  to  the  god";  "  Cicero  is  warned  to  reject  the  offers  of 
Mark  Antony."  As  regards  the  correction  of  compositions,  the 
Master  will  note  his  approval  of  passages  which  shew  ingenuity 
in  selection  of  material,  and  in  its  treatment,  and  in  imitation. 
He  will  censure  omission  or  bad  arrangement  of  matter,  ex- 
aggerations, carelessness,  awkwardness  of  expression.  He  will 
at  the  same  time  point  out  how  corrections  may  be  suitably 
made,  and  ask  for  a  re-writing  of  the  exercise.  Yet,  after  all,  his 
chief  aim  will  be  to  stimulate  his  pupils  by  calling  attention  to 
the  progress  made  by  this  one  or  by  the  other,  thus  arousing  the 
spirit  of  emulation  in  the  class. 

§  10.    The  Best  Methods  of  Procedure  in  Reading  an 
Author  in  Class:    526  f — 528  c. 

In  reading  a  classic  let  the  Master  avoid  the  practice, 
common  to  inferior  teachers,  of  taking  it  as  the  text  for 
universal  and  irrelevant  commentary.  Respect  the  writer,  and 
let  it  be  your  rule  to  rest  content  with  explaining  and  illus- 
trating his  meaning.     This  would  be  the  method  I  advise,  say, 


174        -^^  Ratione  Studii,  526  f — 528  b 

in  taking  a  class  through  a  play  of  Terence.  You  begin  by 
offering  an  appreciation  of  the  author,  and  state  what  is 
necessary  concerning  his  life  and  surroundings,  his  talent,  and 
the  characteristics  of  his  style.  You  next  consider  comedy  as 
an  example  of  a  particular  form  of  literature,  and  its  interest 
for  the  student :  the  origin  and  meaning  of  the  term  itself,  the 
varieties  of  Comedy,  and  the  Terentian  prosody.  Now  you 
proceed  to  treat  briefly  and  clearly  the  argument  of  the  play, 
taking  each  situation  in  due  course.  Side  by  side  with  this 
you  will  handle  the  diction  of  the  writer ;  noting  any  con- 
spicuous elegance,  or  such  peculiarities  as  archaism,  novel 
usage,  Graecisms  ;  bringing  out  anything  that  is  involved  or 
obscure  in  phrases  or  sentence-forms ;  marking,  where  neces- 
sary, derivations  and  orthography,  metaphors  and  other 
rhetorical  artifices.  Parallel  passages  should  next  be  brought 
under  notice,  similarities  and  contrasts  in  treatment  observed, 
and  direct  borrowings  traced — no  difficult  task  when  we  are 
comparing  a  Latin  poet  with  his  Greek  predecessors.  The 
last  factor  in  the  lesson  consists  in  the  moral  applications 
which  it  suggests;  the  story  of  Orestes  and  Pylades,  or  of 
Tantalus,  are  obvious  examples. 

It  may  be  wise  in  some  cases  to  open  the  reading  of  a 
fresh  book  by  arousing  interest  in  its  broader  significance. 
For  instance,  the  Second  Eclogue  of  Vergil  must  be  treated  as 
something  more  than  a  purely  grammatical  or  literary  exercise. 
"  The  essence  of  friendship,"  the  Master  would  begin,  "  lies  in 
similarity.  Violently  contradictory  natures  are  incapable  of 
mutual  affection.  The  stronger  and  the  more  numerous  the 
ties  of  taste  and  interest  the  more  durable  is  the  bond."  This, 
amplified  by  apt  adages  and  wise  reflections,  of  which  litera- 
ture is  full,  will  serve  to  draw  the  pupil's  tholight  to  the  more 
general  aspects  of  his  reading.  But  it  is  only  a  Master  of 
ability,  insight  and  wide  culture,  to  whom  such  a  method  is 
possible.  A  store  of  pertinent  quotations  is  the  product  of 
careful  reading.     For  instance,  in  illustration  of  this  particular 


De  Ratione  Studii,  526  f — 528B         175 

theme,  he  will  adduce  such  quotations  as  this  :  "  cascus 
cascam  ducit :  balbus  balbum  rectius  intelligit :  semper 
graculus  arridet  graculo,"  and  others  of  the  same  import. 
Again,  the  master  will  have  learnt  from  his  knowledge  of 
men  that  extreme  differences  of  fortunes  or  of  intellectual 
tastes  do  not  consist  with  abiding  friendship,  that  a  fool  laughs 
at  a  man  of  education,  a  boor  has  nothing  in  common  with  a 
courtier.  He  knows  that  there  is  a  complete  lack  of  sympathy 
between  the  Stoic  and  the  Epicurean,  the  philosopher  and  the 
attorney,  the  poet  and  the  divine,  the  orator  and  the  recluse. 
See,  too,  what  advantage  learning  gives  to  the  master  in 
enforcing  the  same  theme  from  tradition  and  from  history. 
He  can  refer  to  Castor  and  Pollux,  to  Romulus  and  Remus,  to 
Cain  and  Abel.  The  beautiful  myth  of  Narcissus  will,  in  able 
hands,  prove  a  parable  of  striking  force.  What  has  more  like- 
ness to  ourselves  than  our  own  reflection  ?  Thus,  when  one 
man  of  learning  feels  drawn  to  another,  is  he  not  in  truth 
attracted  by  the  reflection  of  himself?  And  so  of  a  man  of 
wise  temperance,  or  a  man  of  integrity,  conscious  of  similar 
excellence  in  another.  Upon  such  recognition  of  identical 
qualities  is  friendship  based, — I  mean  the  frank,  open  and 
abiding  friendship  which  alone  deserves  the  name.  The 
Platonic  myth  of  the  two  types  of  Aphrodite,  the  celestial 
and  the  profane,  may  be  adduced  to  prove  that  true  affection 
can  subsist  between  the  good  alone.  For  where  excellence  is 
only  upon  one  side,  friendship  is  but  a  fleeting  and  insecure 
thing.  Now  it  is  as  a  parable  of  unstable  friendship  that  the 
Master  should  treat  this  Eclogue.  Alexis  is  of  the  town, 
Corydon  a  countryman ;  Corydon  a  shepherd,  Alexis  a  man  of 
society.  Alexis  cultivated,  young,  graceful ;  Corydon  rude, 
crippled,  his  youth  far  behind  him.  Hence  the  impossibility 
of  a  true  friendship.  The  lesson  finally  left  on  the  mind  of 
the  pupil  is  that  it  is  the  prudent  part  to  choose  friends  among 
those  whose  tastes  and  characters  agree  with  our  own.  Such 
methods  of  treating  a  classical  story,  by  forcing  attention  to 


176         De  Ratione  Studii,   528  b — 5 30  a 

the  moral  to  be  deduced  from  it,  will  serve  to  counteract 
any  harm  which  a  more  literal  interpretation  might  possibly 
convey.  After  all,  it  is  what  a  reader  brings  to  a  passage 
rather  than  what  he  finds  there  which  is  the  real  source  of 
mischief. 

§    II.      An     Introduction    to     Literary    Criticism    is 

AFFORDED    BY   SUCH    A    METHOD    OF    CLASSICAL    INSTRUC- 
TION.      528  C — 529  B. 

Speaking  generally,  it  is  advisable  to  introduce  every  new 
book  read  by  indicating  its  chief  characteristics,  and  then 
setting  out  its  argument.  The  characteristics  of  Epigram  are 
aptness  and  point ;  of  Tragedy  emotion,  the  various  types  of 
which  and  their  exciting  causes  must  be  distinguished.  In  a 
great  play  the  argument  of  each  speech,  the  logical  fence  of 
the  dialogue,  the  scene  where  the  action  is  laid,  the  period, 
and  the  surroundings,  call  for  attention  in  due  order.  Comedy 
suggests  a  different  method  of  introductory  treatment :  a 
more  familiar  setting,  lighter,  less  strenuous  emotions,  are 
common  to  every  comedy,  though  each  play  will  require  its 
own  prefatory  discussion.  In  beginning  the  "  Andria,"  the 
master  will  note  the  contrast  of  Chremes  and  Simo,  as  types 
of  old  age,  of  Pamphilus  and  Charinus  as  examples  of  young 
men.  And  so  through  other  plays.  The  Eclogues  of  Vergil 
will  be  shewn  to  have  their  setting  in  a  Golden  Age ;  their 
ideas,  similes,  comparisons,  are  drawn  from  pastoral  life ;  the 
emotions  depicted  are  far  from  complex ;  the  shepherd's 
delight  is  in  simple  melody  and  the  wisdom  of  maxim  and 
proverb,  his  reverence  is  for  traditional  lore  and  augury.  A 
historical  book,  epic  or  satire,  dialogue  or  fable,  will  be  intro- 
duced each  in  its  appropriate  way,  before  the  text  is  touched 
upon,  and  the  excellence  or  the  defect  of  the  piece  em- 
phasised. 

Most  important  is  it  that  the  student  be  brought  to  learn 


De  Ratione  Studii,  528  b — 5 30  a        177 

for  himself  the  true  method  of  such  criticism,  that  he  may  dis- 
tinguish good  literature  from  mediocrity.  Hence  the  value  of 
acquaintance  with  the  judgments  to  be  found  in  the  oratorical 
writings  of  Cicero  and  Quintilian  ;  in  Seneca  and  in  the  old 
grammarians  such  as  Donatus.  Once  acquired,  this  power  of 
insight  into  the  mind  of  the  great  writers  will  lead  to  a  habit 
of  general  criticism  of  character  and  situation.  The  student 
will  put  such  questions  to  himself  as  these :  Why  did  Cicero 
feign  to  be  afraid  in  his  defence  of  Milo?  Why  did  Vergil 
depict  Turnus  as  a  second  hero  ?  But  enough  to  indicate  what 
I  mean  by  literary  criticism. 


§  12.  Progress  in  Classical  Knowledge  depends  upon 
THE  Learning  and  the  Skill  of  the  Master. 
529  B— 530  a. 

What  has  been  laid  down  above  as  the  function  of  the 
schoolmaster  implies,  I  allow,  that  he  be  a  person  of  no  slight 
learning  and  experience.  But,  given  these  qualities,  I  have  no 
doubt  that  the  class  will  speedily  absorb  the  kind  of  knowledge 
which  I  have  indicated.  The  first  steps  may  be  slow  and 
laborious,  but  exercise  and  right  instruction  make  progress 
certain.  I  only  stipulate  that  the  material  selected  be  of 
sound  classical  excellence  (nothing  mediaeval),  and  the  method 
skilfully  adapted  to  the  growing  comprehension  ;  the  teacher 
forcing  nothing,  but  working  forward  gradually  from  the 
broader  aspects  of  his  subject  to  the  more  minute.  Success 
then  is  assured.  One  further  counsel,  however.  The  master 
must  not  omit  to  set  as  an  exercise  the  reproduction  of  what 
he  has  given  to  the  class.  It  involves  time  and  trouble  to  the 
teacher,  I  know  well,  but  it  is  essential.  A  literal  reproduction 
of  the  matter  taught  is,  of  course,  not  required,  but  the 
substance  of  it  presented  in  the  pupil's  own  way.  Personally 
I  disapprove  of  the  practice  of  taking  down  a  lecture  just  as  it 

w,  12 


lyS  De  Ratione  Studii,   530  a — b 

is  delivered.  For  this  prevents  reliance  upon  memory  which 
should,  as  time  goes  on,  need  less  and  less  of  that  external  aid 
which  note-taking  supplies. 


§  13.     Conclusion.     530  a — b. 

Such  weight  do  I  ascribe  to  right  method  in  instruction — 
and  I  include  herein  choice  of  material  as  well  as  of  modes  of 
imparting  it — that  I  undertake  by  its  means  to  carry  forward 
youths  of  merely  average  intelligence  to  a  creditable  standard 
of  scholarship,  and  of  conversation  also,  in  Latin  and  Greek, 
at  an  age  when,  under  the  common  schoolmaster  of  to-day,  the 
same  youths  would  be  just  stammering  through  their  Primer. 
With  the  foundations  thus  rightly  laid  a  boy  may  confidently 
look  forward  to  success  in  the  higher  range  of  learning.  He 
will,  when  he  looks  back,  admit  that  the  essential  condition  of 
his  attainment  was  the  care  which  was  devoted  to  the  be- 
ginnings of  his  education. 


THE    TREATISE 

De  Pueris  statim  ac  liberaliter  instituendis, 


ADDRESSED   TO 


WILLIAM,   DUKE   OF   CLEVES,    1529. 

ERAS.   Op.  i.  489. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

DE  PUERIS  STATIM  AC  LIBERALITER  INSTITUEN- 
DIS  LIBELLUS;  or,  THE  ARGUMENT  OF  ERASMUS 
OF  ROTTERDAM,  THAT  CHILDREN  SHOULD 
STRAIGHTWA  V  FROM  THEIR  EARLIEST  YEARS 
BE  TRAINED  IN  VIRTUE  AND  SOUND  LEARN- 
ING.   1529.     Addressed  to  William,  Duke  of  Ci-eves. 

§  I.     The  Argument  at  Large  :  i.  489  a — d. 

I  desire  to  urge  upon  you,  Illustrious  Duke,  to  take  into 
your  early  and  serious  consideration  the  future  nurture  and 
training  of  the  son  lately  born  to  you.  For,  with  Chrysippus, 
I  contend  that  the  young  child  must  be  led  to  sound  learning 
whilst  his  wit  is  yet  unwarped,  his  age  tender,  his  mind  flexible 
and  tenacious.  In  manhood  we  remember  nothing  so  well  as 
the  truths  which  we  imbibed  in  our  youth.  Wherefore  I  beg 
you  to  put  aside  all  idle  chatter  which  would  persuade  you  that 
this  early  childhood  is  unmeet  for  the  discipline  and  the  effort 
of  studies. 

The  arguments  which  I  shall  enlarge  upon  are  the  following. 
First,  the  beginnings  of  learning  are  the  work  of  memory,  which 
in  young  children  is  most  tenacious.  Next,  as  nature  has 
implanted  in  us  the  instinct  to  seek  for  knowledge,  can  we  be 
too  early  in  obeying  her  behest  ?  Thirdly,  there  are  not  a  few 
things  which  it  imports  greatly  that  we  should  know  well,  and 
which  we  can  learn  far  more  readily  in  our  tender  years. 
I  speak  of  the  elements  of  Letters,  Grammar,  and  the  fables 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  489  a — d  181 

and  stories  found  in  the  ancient  Poets.  Fourthly,  since 
children,  as  all  agree,  are  fit  to  acquire  manners,  why  may 
they  not  acquire  the  rudiments  of  learning  ?  And  seeing  that 
they  must  needs  be  busy  about  something,  what  else  can  be 
better  approved  ?  For  how  much  wiser  to  amuse  their  hours 
with  Letters,  than  to  see  them  frittered  away  in  aimless 
trifling  ! 

It  is,  however,  objected,  first,  that  such  knowledge  as  can 
be  thus  early  got  is  of  slight  value.  But  even  so,  why  despise 
it,  if  so  be  it  serve  as  the  foundation  for  much  greater  things  ? 
For  if  in  early  childhood  a  boy  acquire  such  useful  elements 
he  will  be  free  to  apply  his  youth  to  higher  knowledge,  to  the 
saving  of  his  time.  Moreover,  whilst  he  is  thus  occupied  in  sound 
learning  he  will  perforce  be  kept  from  some  of  the  temptations 
which  befall  youth,  seeing  that  nothing  engages  the  whole 
mind  more  than  studies.  And  this  I  count  a  high  gain  in  such 
times  as  ours. 

Next,  it  is  urged  that  by  such  application  health  may  be 
somewhat  endangered.  Supposing  this  to  be  true,  still  the 
compensation  is  great,  for  by  discipline  the  mind  gains  far 
more  in  alertness  and  in  vigour  than  the  body  is  ever  likely  to 
lose.  Watchfulness,  however,  will  prevent  any  such  risk  as  is 
imagined.  Also,  for  this  tender  age  you  will  employ  a  teacher 
who  will  win  and  not  drive,  just  as  you  will  choose  such 
subjects  as  are  pleasant  and  attractive,  in  which  the  young 
mind  will  find  recreation  rather  than  toil. 

Furthermore,  I  bid  you  remember  that  a  man  ignorant  of 
Letters  is  no  man  at  all,  that  human  life  is  a  fleeting  thing,  that 
youth  is  easily  enticed  into  sin,  that  early  manhood  is  absorbed 
by  clashing  interests,  that  old  age  is  unproductive,  and  that  few 
reach  it.  How  then  can  you  allow  your  child,  in  whom  you 
yourself  live  again,  to  lose  even  one  of  those  precious  years  in 
which  he  may  begin  to  acquire  those  means  whereby  he  may 
elevate  his  whole  life  and  keep  at  arm's  length  temptation  and 
evil? 


1 82    De  Pueris  Instituendis,   486  d — 491  d 


§  2.     The  First  Law  :   Education  must  begin  from  the 
very  earliest  years.     486  d — 49o  a. 

I  rejoice  at  your  determination  that  your  son  shall  be  early 
initiated  into  the  arts  of  true  learning  and  the  wisdom  of  sound 
philosophy.  Herein  consists  the  full  duty  of  fatherhood,  the 
care  and  guidance  of  the  spirit  of  him  for  whose  creation  you 
are  responsible.  And  now  for  my  first  precept.  Do  not 
follow  the  fashion,  which  is  too  common  amongst  us,  of  allowing 
the  early  years  of  childhood  to  pass  without  fruit  of  instruction, 
and  of  deferring  its  first  steps  until  the  allurements  of  in- 
dulgence have  made  application  more  difficult. 

§  3.     The   Importance  of  skilled   Control  from  the 
outset.     490  a — 491  d. 

I  urge  you,  therefore,  to  look  even  now  for  a  scholar  of 
high  character  and  attainment  to  whom  you  may  commit  the 
charge  of  your  boy's  mind  and  disposition,  leaving  to  wisely 
chosen  nurses  the  care  of  his  bodily  welfare.  By  thus  dividing 
control  the  child  will  be  saved  from  the  mischievous  kindnesses 
and  indulgence  of  foolish  serving-women,  and  of  weak  relatives, 
who  decry  learning  as  so  much  poison,  and  babble  about  the 
unfitness  of  the  growing  boy  for  Letters.  To  such  chatter  you 
will  turn  a  deaf  ear.  For,  remembering  that  the  welfare  of 
your  son  demands  not  less  circumspection  from  you  than  a 
man  will  gladly  bestow  upon  his  horse,  his  castle,  his  estate, 
you  will  take  heed  only  to  the  wisest  counsel  which  you  can 
secure,  and  ponder  that  with  yourself.  Consider,  in  this  regard, 
the  care  which  a  boy's  mother  will  lavish  upon  his  bodily 
frame,  how  she  will  take  thought  should  she  but  faintly  suspect 
in  him  a  tendency  to  become  wry-necked,  cross-eyed,  crook- 
backed  or  splay-footed,  or  by  any  mischance  prove  ill-formed 
in  proportions  of  his  figure.     Think,  too,  how  she  is  apt  to 


De  Pueris  InstitMendis,  486  d — 491  d     183 

busy  herself  about  his  milk,  his  meat,  his  bath,  his  exercise, 
following  herein  the  wise  foresight  of  Galen;  will  she  defer 
this  carefulness  until  the  seventh  year  ?  No,  from  the  very  day 
of  his  birth  charge  is  taken  lest  mischief  hap,  and  wisely, 
knowing  that  a  weakly  manhood  may  be  thus  avoided.  Nay, 
even  before  the  child  be  bom,  how  diligent  is  the  wise 
mother  to  see  that  no  harm  come  to  herself  for  her  child's 
sake. 

No  one  blames  this  as  undue  or  untimely  care  for  the 
young  life.  Why  then  do  men  neglect  that  part  of  our  nature, 
the  nobler  part,  whereby  we  are  rightly  called  men ;  we  bestow, 
justly,  our  effort  upon  the  mortal  body ;  yet  have  we  but  slight 
regard  for  the  immortal  spirit. 

Are  other  instances  needed  ?  Then  think  of  the  training  of 
a  colt,  how  early  it  is  begun ;  or  of  the  work  of  the  husbandman 
who  fashions  and  trains  the  sapling  to  suit  his  taste  or  to 
further  the  fruitfulness  of  the  tree.  This  is  a  task  of  human 
skill  and  purpose ;  and  the  sooner  these  are  applied  the  more 
sure  the  result. 


§  4.     The  Supreme  Importance  of  Education  to  human 
Well-being,  491  d — 492  a. 

To  dumb  creatures  Mother  Nature  has  given  an  innate 
power  or  instinct,  whereby  they  may  in  great  part  attain  to 
their  right  capacities.  But  Providence  in  granting  to  man 
alone  the  privilege  of  reason  has  thrown  the  burden  of  deve- 
lopment of  the  human  being  upon  training.  Well,  therefore, 
has  it  been  said  that  the  first  means,  the  second,  and  the  third 
means  to  happiness  is  right  training  or  education.  Sound 
education  is  the  condition  of  real  wisdom.  And  if  an  education 
which  is  soundly  planned  and  carefully  carried  out  is  the  very 
fount  of  all  human  excellence,  so,  on  the  other  hand,  careless 
and  unworthy  training  is  the  true  source  of  folly  and  vice. 
This  capacity  for  training  is,  indeed,  the  chief  aptitude  which 


184    De  Pueris  Instituendis,  491  d — 492  d 

has  been  bestowed  upon  humanity.  Unto  the  animals  nature 
has  given  swiftness  of  foot  or  of  wing,  keenness  of  sight, 
strength  or  size  of  frame,  and  various  weapons  of  defence.  To 
Man,  instead  of  physical  powers,  is  given  a  mind  apt  for 
training ;  in  this  single  gift  all  others  are  comprised,  for  him, 
at  least,  who  turns  it  to  due  profit.  We  see  that  where  native 
instinct  is  strong — as  in  squirrels  or  bees — capacity  for  being 
taught  is  wanting.  Man,  lacking  instinct,  can  do  little  or 
nothing  of  innate  power ;  scarce  can  he  eat,  or  walk,  or  speak, 
unless  he  be  guided  thereto.  How  then  can  we  expect  that  he 
should  become  competent  to  the  duties  of  life  unless  straight- 
way and  with  much  diligence  he  be  brought  under  the  discipline 
of  a  worthy  education  ?  Let  me  enforce  this  by  the  well-known 
story  of  Lycurgus,  who,  to  convince  the  Spartans,  brought  out 
two  hounds,  one  of  good  mettle,  but  untrained  and  therefore 
useless  in  the  field,  and  the  other  poorly  bred  and  well-drilled 
at  his  work;  "Nature,"  he  said,  "maybe  strong,  yet  Education 
is  more  powerful  still." 

§  5.     Parents  will   not   see  that   in   their   children's 
interests  education   matters   most.     492  a — c. 

Yet  we  see  a  father,  who  bestows  no  little  heed  to  ensure 
that  his  horses  and  dogs  are  of  the  right  breed,  careless  whether 
his  son  be  properly  trained  that  he  may  prove  an  honour  to  his 
parents,  and  helpful  to  them  in  their  later  years,  a  worthy 
husband,  a  brave  and  useful  citizen.  Yet  for  whom  does  such 
a  father  plant  and  build?  for  whose  behoof  does  he  contrive 
wealth  by  land  and  by  sea  ?  For  his  children,  forsooth.  But 
what  profit  or  honour  lies  in  inheriting  such  things  if  their 
possessor  has  no  skill  to  use  them  aright  ?  Who  will  fashion 
ingeniously  a  harp  for  one  who  has  not  learnt  to  play  upon  it  ? 
Or  furnish  a  library  for  one  who  knows  or  cares  nothing  for 
books?  Why,  therefore,  heap  up  riches  for  one  who  knows 
not  how  to  employ  them  ?     For  note  this  well :  that  he  who 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,   491  i) — 492  D      185 

provides  for  a  son  who  is  worthily  educated,  provides  means  to 
virtue :  but  whoso  saves  for  a  child  endowed  with  rude 
temper  and  uncultivated  wit  is  but  ministering  to  oppor- 
tunities of  indulgence  and  mischief  It  is  the  height  of  folly 
that  one  should  train  the  body  to  be  comely,  and  wholly 
neglect  that  excellence  of  mind  which  alone  can  guide  it 
aright.  For  I  hesitate  not  to  affirm  that  those  things  which 
men  covet  for  their  sons — health,  riches,  and  repute — are  more 
surely  secured  by  virtue  and  learning — the  gifts  of  education — 
than  by  any  other  means.  True,  the  highest  gifts  of  all  no 
man  can  give  to  another,  even  to  his  child ;  but  we  can  store  his 
mind  with  that  sound  wisdom  and  learning  whereby  he  may 
attain  to  the  best. 


§  6.     Oi'HER  Parents  neglect  the  duty  of  Education 

UNTIL   TOO    LATE.       492  C — 493  B. 

Further,  there  are  those — sometimes  men  of  repute  for 
practical  wisdom — who  err  in  deferring  education  till  the  stage 
when  the  boy  finds  the  rudiments  of  learning  irksome  to 
acquire.  Yet  these  same  fathers  will  be  over-anxious  for  their 
children's  future  fortune  even  before  they  be  bom.  We  hear 
of  astrologers  called  in:  "the  child,"  it  is  affirmed,  "will  be  a 
born  soldier."  "Then  let  us  plan  to  enter  him  into  the  king's 
service."  "  He  will  be  the  very  type  of  a  churchman."  "Then 
let  us  work  for  a  bishopric  or  an  abbey  for  him."  And  this  is 
not  thought  to  be  taking  care  prematurely  for  a  career  yet  far- 
distant.  Why  then  refuse  to  provide  not  less  early  that  the 
boy  may  be  worthily  prepared  to  fill  it :  so  that  he  grow  up  not 
only  to  be  a  captain  of  a  troop,  but  a  fit  and  reputable  officer 
of  the  commonwealth ;  not  merely  to  be  called  a  bishop,  but 
to  be  made  worthy  of  his  charge  ?  Men  seem  to  me  to  have 
regard  to  nothing  less  than  to  that  end  to  which  all  these 
other  ends  are  subordinate.  Lands,  castles,  furnishings,  dress, 
servants,  all  are  well  cared  for,  and  are  of  the  best :  the  son  of 


1 86     De  Pueris  Inslituendis,  492  d — 494  f 

the  house  alone  is  left  untrained,  untaught,  ignorant,  boorish. 
A  man  buys  a  slave;  he  may  be  useless  at  first,  as  knowing 
nothing.  Straightway  he  is  tried,  and  it  is  quickly  found  what 
he  can  best  do,  and  to  that  craft  he  is  diligently  trained.  But 
the  same  man  will  wholly  neglect  his  son's  up-bringing.  "He 
will  have  enough  to  live  upon,"  he  will  say.  "  But  not  enough 
to  live  a  worthy  life,"  I  rejoin.  "  What  need  of  learning  ? 
He  will  have  wealth."  "Then  the  more  need  of  all  the 
guidance  that  Letters  and  Philosophy  can  bestow."  How 
active,  for  instance,  do  princes  show  themselves  to  get  for 
their  sons  as  large  a  dominion  as  they  can,  whilst  no  men 
seem  to  care  less  that  their  heirs  should  be  duly  educated  to 
fulfil  the  responsibility  that  must  fall  to  them.  The  saying  of 
Alexander  is  often  quoted :  "  Were  I  not  Alexander  I  would 
be  Diogenes."  But  Plutarch  is  right  in  his  reflection,  that  the 
very  fact  that  he  was  lord  of  so  great  an  empire  was,  had  he 
known  it,  reason  enough  for  him  to  desire  to  be  a  philosopher 
as  well.  How  much  more  does  that  father  give  his  son  who 
gives  him  that  by  which  he  may  it've  worthily  than  he  who 
merely  gives  that  whereby  he  may  live  \ 

§  7.     Reason  the  true  mark  of  Man.     493  b — 494  a. 

Now  it  is  the  possession  of  Reason  which  constitutes  a 
Man.  If  trees  or  wild  beasts  grow,  men,  believe  me,  are 
fashioned.  Men  in  olden  time  who  led  their  life  in  forests, 
driven  by  the  mere  needs  and  desires  of  their  natures,  guided 
by  no  laws,  with  no  ordering  in  communities,  are  to  be  judged 
rather  as  savage  beasts  than  as  men.  For  Reason,  the  mark  of 
humanity,  has  no  place  where  all  is  determined  by  appetite. 
It  is  beyond  dispute  that  a  man  not  instructed  through  reason 
in  philosophy  and  sound  learning  is  a  creature  lower  than 
a  brute,  seeing  that  there  is  no  beast  more  wild  or  more 
harmful  than  a  man  who  is  driven  hither  and  thither  by 
ambition,  or  desire,  anger  or  envy,  or  lawless  temper.     There- 


De  Pueris  histituendis,  492  d — 494  f     187 

fore  do  I  conclude  that  he  that  provides  not  that  his  own  son 
may  presently  be  instructed  in  the  best  learning  is  neither  a 
man  nor  the  son  of  a  man.  Would  it  not  be  a  horror  to  look 
upon  a  human  soul  clad  in  the  form  of  a  beast,  as  Circe  is 
fabled  to  have  done  by  her  spells  ?  But  is  it  not  worse  that  a 
father  should  see  his  own  image  slowly  but  surely  becoming 
the  dwelling-place  of  a  brute's  nature  ?  It  is  said  a  bear's  cub 
is  at  birth  but  an  ill-formed  lump  which  by  a  long  process  of 
licking  is  brought  into  shape.  Nature,  in  giving  you  a  son, 
presents  you,  let  me  say,  a  rude,  unformed  creature,  which  it  is 
your  part  to  fashion  so  that  it  may  become  indeed  a  man. 
If  this  fashioning  be  neglected  you  have  but  an  animal  still : 
if  it  be  contrived  earnestly  and  wisely,  you  have,  I  had  almost 
said,  what  may  prove  a  being  not  far  from  a  God. 

§  8.  Education  of  their  children  is  a  Duty  owed  by 
parents  to  the  commonwealth  and  to  god. 
494  A— 495  A. 

Straightway  from  the  child's  birth  it  is  meet  that  he  should 
begin  to  learn  the  things  which  properly  belong  to  his  well- 
being.  Therefore,  bestow  especial  pains  upon  his  tenderest 
years,  as  Vergil  teaches.  Handle  the  wax  whilst  it  is  soft, 
mould  the  clay  whilst  it  is  moist,  dye  the  fleece  before  it  gather 
stains.  It  is  no  light  task  to  educate  our  children  aright. 
Yet  think — to  lighten  the  burden— how  much  comfort  and 
honour  parents  derive  from  children  well  brought  up :  and 
reflect  how  much  sorrow  is  engendered  of  them  that  grow  up 
evilly.  And  further,  no  man  is  born  to  himself,  no  man  is 
born  to  idleness.  Your  children  are  begotten  not  to  yourself 
alone,  but  to  your  country :  not  to  your  country  alone,  but  to 
God.  Paul  teaches  that  women  are  saved  by  reason  that  they 
bring  up  their  children  in  the  pursuit  of  virtue.  God  will 
straitly  charge  the  parents  with  their  children's  faults ;  there- 
fore, except  they  bring  up  their  little  ones  from  the  very  first  to 


1 88     De  Pueris  Instituendis,  494  f — 496  a 

live  aright,  they  themselves  will  share  the  penalty.  For  a 
child  rightly  educated  is  a  comfort  and  a  joy  to  his  parents, 
but  a  foolish  child  brings  upon  them  shame,  it  may  be  poverty, 
and  old  age  before  their  time.  Nay,  I  know  not  a  few  men  of 
note  and  place  who  have  lost  their  sons  by  lamentable  deaths, 
the  results  of  evil  life ;  some  fathers,  indeed,  which  out  of 
many  children  had  scarce  one  surviving.  And  this  from  no 
other  cause  than  that  they  have  made  portions  for  their  sons, 
but  have  taken  no  heed  to  train  them.  They  are  called 
murderers  who  kill  their  new-born  children :  but  such  kill  the 
mere  body.  How  great,  then,  is  their  crime  who  destroy  the 
soul  ?  For  what  other  thing  is  the  death  of  the  soul  than  to 
live  in  folly  and  sin  ?  Such  fathers  do  no  less  wrong  to  their 
country,  to  which,  as  far  as  in  them  lies,  they  give  pestilent 
citizens.  They  do,  equally,  a  wrong  against  God,  at  whose 
hands  they  receive  their  offspring  to  bring  it  up  to  His 
service. 


§  9.    Vicious  Habits  in  which  parents  encourage  their 
children.     495  b — 496  a. 

But  there  is  an  education  which  is  worse  than  none  at 
all.  For  how  shall  we  describe  those  who  go  about  to  imbue 
the  tender  mind  with  wickedness,  before  it  be  able  to  know 
what  wickedness  is  ?  For  example,  how  can  a  child  grow  up 
to  modesty  and  humility  who  in  his  very  infancy  totters  in 
the  purple?  He  cannot  yet  sound  his  letters,  but  he  knows 
what  cramoisie  is,  and  brocade :  he  craves  for  dainty  dishes 
and  disdainfully  pushes  away  simple  food.  The  tailor  con- 
trives some  new  marvel  in  cap  or  tunic ;  straightway  we  must 
dress  up  the  child  therein ;  we  tickle  his  vanity,  and  then 
we  wonder  that  he  develops  irritation  and  self-conceit !  The 
serving-women  teach  him  evil  words,  and  for  their  amusement 
tempt  him  to  repeat  them.  He  is  brought  up  to  sit  through 
long  feastings ;  he  hears  the  noise  of  jesters,   minstrels,  and 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  494  f — 496  a     i  89 

dancers.  The  guests,  nay,  his  own  father,  sprawl  drunkenly  in 
his  presence.  And  yet  you  pray  that  he  may  grow  up  honest, 
temperate,  and  pure.  I  would  also  denounce  those  who  bring 
up  their  sons  to  a  love  of  war.  Straight  from  their  mother's 
arms  they  are  bidden  to  finger  swords  and  shields,  to  thrust 
and  strike.  With  such  tastes,  already  deeply  rooted  with  years,  • 
they  are  handed  over  to  a  master,  who  is  blamed  for  their 
indifference  to  worthy  interests.  If  it  be  urged  that  parents 
find  some  pleasure  in  this  evil  precocity  of  their  children,  let 
me  ask  if  any  true  father  will  rather  that  his  son  pick  up  gross 
speech,  and  copy  some  shameful  act,  than  hear  him,  with 
stammering  tongue,  utter  something  worthy  and  true  ?  Nature 
has  made  the  first  years  of  our  life  prone  to  imitation — though 
perhaps  it  is  easier  to  that  age  to  copy  evil  than  good — and 
with  imitativeness  she  has  given  also  tenacity  in  retention. 
Hence  the  mischief  that  accrues  when  mothers  are  allowed  to 
keep  their  children  in  their  lap  until  they  are  seven  years  of 
age  :  if  they  want  playthings  do  they  not  see  that  monkeys  or 
toy-dogs  would  serve  them  just  as  well?  For  no  one  can 
exaggerate  the  importance  of  these  years  for  character,  nor 
the  difficulty  which  such  enervating,  debasing  up-bringing  at 
this  stage  creates  for  the  teachers  who  then  take  over  the 
task.  Menander  and  Paul  were  perfectly  right :  such  "evil 
communications  corrupt  good  manners." 


§  10.    Savage  Nature  teaches  the  same  lesson  of  Care 
for  early  training  of  the  young.     496  a — e. 

But  if  neither  love  nor  reason  suffice  to  teach  us  our  duty, 
let  us  turn  to  the  example  of  the  brute  creation.  For  mankind 
has  admittedly  learned  therefrom  much  useful  knowledge. 
For  instance,  the  hippopotamus  has  shown  us  the  method  of 
cutting  a  vein ;  the  ibis  the  use  of  the  clyster,  so  much 
approved  by  physicians.    The  stag  has  taught  men  that  dittany 


IQO     De  Pueris  Instituendis,  496  a — 497  a 

is  helpful  in  drawing  out  arrows,  and  that  the  eating  of  crabs  is 
an  antidote  to  the  poison  of  spiders.  Goats  have  proved  that 
ivy  is  a  remedy  in  certain  affections.  Lizards  use  dittany 
against  the  bite  of  snakes,  their  standing  foes.  From  the 
weasel  we  learnt  the  use  of  rue,  from  the  serpent  the  use  of 
fennel  in  affections  of  the  eye.  The  dragon  is  our  warrant  for 
employing  lettuce  in  sickness.  Much  more  of  such  knowledge 
have  we  derived  from  dumb  animals.  Practical  arts  also  have 
been  acquired  from  them  to  our  great  profit.  Nay,  I  might 
almost  say  that  there  is  nothing  which  advantages  the  life  of 
man  of  which  nature  has  not  shown  us  some  example  in 
wild  creatures,  to  the  end  that  they  who  have  not  learnt 
philosophy  and  the  rational  arts  may  be  admonished  by  them 
what  men  may  do.  Attend,  therefore,  to  that  which  we  may 
learn  from  them  as  to  the  training  of  children.  We  see  that  every 
savage  creature  is  not  content  only  to  produce  its  young,  but 
teaches  it,  and  shapes  it  to  fulfil  its  proper  function.  A  bird  is, 
indeed,  created  with  instinct  for  flight,  but  we  see  how  the 
fiedgUng  is  led  on  and  guided  in  its  first  attempts  by  the  parent 
birds.  The  cat  teaches  her  kittens  to  watch,  to  spring,  to  kill. 
The  stag  leads  her  young  in  chase,  brings  them  to  the  leap, 
shows  the  methods  of  escape  from  pursuit.  Authors  have 
recounted  to  us  that  the  elephant  and  the  dolphin  exhibit 
a  veritable  art  in  educating  their  young  ones.  So  of  nightin- 
gales— the  old  bird  goes  in  front,  calls  back  to,  and  corrects, 
the  young  one,  which  in  turn  follows  and  obeys.  And  I  affirm 
that,  as  the  instinct  of  the  dog  is  to  hunt,  of  the  bird  to  fly,  of 
the  horse  to  gallop,  so  the  natural  bent  of  man  is  to  philosophy 
and  right  conduct.  As  every  creature  most  readily  learns  that 
for  which  it  is  created,  therefore  will  Man,  with  but  slight 
effort,  be  brought  to  follow  that  to  which  Nature  has  given 
him  so  strong  an  instinct,  viz.  excellence,  but  on  one  con- 
dition :  that  Nature  be  reinforced  by  the  wise  energy  of  the 
Educator. 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  496  A — 497  a      191 


§  II.     The  Three  Factors  in  Individual  Progress: 
Nature,  Method,  Practice.     496  e — 497  a. 

Can  anything  be  more  deplorable  than  to  have  to  admit 
that,  whilst  an  unreasoning  animal  performs  by  instinct  its 
duty  towards  its  offspring,  Man,  the  creature  of  Reason,  is 
blind  to  what  he  owes  to  Nature,  to  parental  responsibility, 
and  to  God?  But  I  will  now  consider  definitely  the  three 
conditions  which  determine  individual  progress.  They  are 
Nature,  Training  and  Practice.  By  Nature,  I  mean,  partly, 
innate  capacity  for  being  trained,  partly,  native  bent  towards 
excellence.  By  Training,  I  mean  the  skilled  application  of 
instruction  and  guidance.  By  Practice,  the  free  exercise  on 
our  own  part  of  that  activity  which  has  been  implanted  by 
Nature  and  is  furthered  by  Training.  Nature  without  skilled 
Training  must  be  imperfect,  and  Practice  without  the  method 
which  Training  supplies  leads  to  hopeless  confusion. 


§  12.     The  Error  of  those  who  think  that  Experience 

GIVES   ALL   THE    EDUCATION   THAT    MeN    NEED.       497  A — F. 

They  err,  therefore,  who  affirm  that  wisdom  is  won  by 
handling  affairs  and  by  contact  with  life,  without  aid  from  the 
teaching  of  philosophy.  Tell  me,  can  a  man  run  his  best  in 
the  dark?  Or,  can  a  gladiator  conquer  if  he  be  blindfold? 
The  precepts  of  philosophy — which  is  knowledge  applied  to 
life — are,  as  it  were,  the  eyes  of  the  mind,  and  lighten  us  to  the 
consciousness  of  what  we  may  do  and  may  not  do.  A  long  and 
manifold  experience  is,  beyond  doubt,  of  great  profit,  but  only 
to  such  as  by  the  wisdom  of  learning  have  acquired  an  intelli- 
gent and  informed  judgment.  Besides,  philosophy  teaches  us 
more  in  one  year  than  our  own  individual  experience  can  teach 
us  in  thirty,  and  its  teaching  carries  none  of  the  risks  which  the 


192    De  Pueris  Instituendis,  497  b — 498  d 

method  of  learning  by  experience  of  necessity  brings  with  it. 
For  example,  you  educate  your  son  to  the  mystery  of  medicine. 
Do  you  allow  him  to  rely  on  the  method  of  "  experience  "  in 
order  that  he  may  learn  to  distinguish  between  poisons  and 
healing  drugs  ?  Or,  do  you  send  him  to  the  treatises  ?  It  is 
an  unhappy  education  which  teaches  the  master  mariner  the 
rudiments  of  navigation  by  shipwrecks :  or  the  Prince  the  true 
way  of  kingship  by  revolutions,  invasions  or  slaughter.  Is  it 
not  the  wise  part  to  learn  beforehand  how  to  avoid  mischiefs 
rather  than  with  the  pains  of  experience  to  remedy  them? 
Thus  Philip  of  Macedon  put  his  son  Alexander  to  school  with 
Aristotle  that  he  might  learn  philosophy  of  him,  to  the  end 
that  when  a  king  he  should  be  saved  from  doing  things  which 
must  be  repented  of.  Thus  education  shews  us  in  brief  what 
we  should  follow,  what  avoid ;  she  does  not  wait  till  we  have 
suffered  the  evil  results  of  our  mistakes,  but  warns  us  in  advance 
against  courses  which  will  lead  to  failure  and  misery.  Let  us, 
therefore,  firmly  knit  up  this  threefold  cord :  let  Nature  be  by 
Training  guided  to  wise  ends,  let  Nature  and  Training,  thus 
united,  be  made  perfect  by  right  Practice. 

When  we  observe  animal  life,  we  notice  that  each  creature 
learns,  first  of  all,  to  perform  those  things  which  preserve  life 
and  to  avoid  those  things  which  make  for  pain  and  destruction. 
This  is  true  not  less  of  plants,  as  we  can  see  when  we  contrast 
the  close-knit  tree  of  the  exposed  sea-coast  and  its  fellow 
spreading  luxuriantly  in  warmth  and  shelter.  All  living  things 
strive  to  develop  according  to  their  proper  nature.  What  is 
the  proper  nature  of  Man?  Surely  it  is  to  live  the  life  of 
Reason,  for  reason  is  the  peculiar  prerogative  of  man.  And 
what  is  it  that  in  man  makes  for  pain  and  destruction  ?  Surely 
it  is  Folly,  which  is  life  without  reason.  It  is,  then,  certain 
that  desire  for  excellence  and  aversion  to  folly  come  readily  to 
man  if  only  his  nature,  as  yet  empty  of  content,  be  from  the 
outset  of  life  filled  mth  right  activities.  Yet  we  hear  extravagant 
complaints  "how  prone  is  child-nature  to  wrong,  how  hard  to 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  497  b — 498  d     193 

win  to  excellence."  But  herein  men  accuse  nature  unjustly. 
Parents  themselves  are  to  blame  in  taking  little  heed  for  that 
which  the  child  imbibes  in  his  early  years. 


§  13.  The  Importance  of  choosing  aright  the  Child's 
FIRST  Master  :  Obstacles  arising  from  Ignorance, 
Indifference,  Parsimony.     497  f — 498  e. 

I  affirm  that  at  the  present  day  three  grave  mistakes  are 
rife  in  respect  of  the  first  stage  of  education.  Either,  there  is 
no  education  at  all :  or  it  is  begun  too  late :  or  it  is  entrusted 
to  wrong  hands. 

With  the  first  of  these  I  have  already  dealt,  and  have 
proved  that  fathers  guilty  of  this  neglect  are  no  fathers  at  all. 
And  I  have  shewn  that  the  second  error  is  only  less  perilous. 
It  remains  now  to  discuss  the  third.  Parents  fall  into  the 
mistake  of  making  a  wrong  choice  of  teacher  through  ignorance, 
or  rather,  perhaps,  indifference.  A  man  would  not  plead  that 
he  does  not  know  what  kind  of  man  has  charge  of  his  stud,  or 
his  farm ;  but  he  seems  content  to  know  nothing  about  the 
man  who  has  charge  of  a  far  more  precious  possession,  his  own 
son.  He  will  shew  much  sense  in  ordering  the  several  duties 
of  his  servants.  The  bailiff,  the  house-steward,  the  cook,  are 
chosen  with  much  discretion.  The  son  of  the  house,  on  the 
other  hand,  is  turned  over  to  some  dullard  or  idler,  who  is 
regarded  as  useless  for  a  more  serious  task.  And  then  people 
talk  about  "  Nature's  fault "  ! 

Or  take  the  case  of  a  father  who  grudges  the  pay  of  a  decent 
tutor,  whom  he  puts  off  with  a  lower  wage  than  he  gives  his 
groom.  Yet  the  same  niggard  will  spend  a  fortune  upon 
banquets  and  wine,  upon  play,  jesters  and  his  mistress.  "  The 
cheapest  thing  going  to-day,"  says  the  Satirist,  "  is  education." 
"I  pay  my  cook,"  said  Crates  ironically,  "four  pounds  a  year; 
but  a  philosopher  can  be  hired  for  about  sixpence,  and  a  tutor 
for  three  half-pence."  So  to-day  a  man  stands  aghast  at  the 
w.  13 


1 94     De  Pueris  Instiiuendis,  498  e — 499  c 

thought  of  paying  for  his  boy's  education  a  sum  which  would 
buy  a  foal  or  hire  a  farm  servant.  At  a  single  feast  and  the 
dicing  that  follows  he  will  lose  two  hundred  pounds,  but  he 
complains  of  extravagance  if  his  son's  education  cost  him 
twenty.  Frugality  ?  Yes,  by  all  means  :  but  in  this  matter 
of  all  others  frugality  is  no  economy ;  it  is  another  name  for 
madness. 

Again,  there  are  those  who  are  ready  to  consider  well  the 
choice  of  a  master,  but  are  ready  to  select  a  man  merely  to 
oblige  a  friend.  The  suitable  man  is  rejected ;  the  incompetent 
person  fixed  upon ;  easy  compliance,  lacking  any  sense  of 
responsibility,  decides  it  all.  This  is  the  indifference  I  spoke 
of;  but  it  is  more,  it  is  outrageous  folly.  For,  after  all,  it 
is  not  only  a  question  of  the  boy  himself,  but  of  his  parents, 
his  house,  nay,  of  the  commonwealth  itself  to  which  he  will 
belong. 

§  14.     The  Nursling.     498  e — 499  a. 

The  child's  nature,  as  we  have  said  before,  is  the  primitive 
endowment  with  which  he  is  born,  which  human  purpose  can 
do  nothing  to  determine  in  advance.  Still  there  may  be  some 
qualification  to  this.  For  instance,  it  imports  much  in  regard 
to  the  child  that  the  father  have  chosen  a  wife  of  sound  health 
and  of  good  stock,  with  wholesome  and  virtuous  habits.  The 
links  that  bind  together  mind  and  body  are  so  close  that  it 
cannot  be  but  that  the  physical  nature  affects  the  spiritual. 
Again,  as  the  child  reflects  the  disposition  of  its  parents,  let 
them  observe  moderation  in  appetites  and  keep  strict  guard 
over  themselves  that  they  should  be  temperate,  not  given  to 
anger ;  the  father  sober,  the  mother,  especially  during  the 
months  preceding  the  child's  birth,  of  good  conscience  and 
free  from  anxieties.  Further,  it  will  be  good  for  the  child  that 
it  be  nursed  by  the  mother ;  should  necessity  arise  for  a  foster- 
mother,  she  must  be  strong  and  of  right  disposition.     Neglect 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  498  e — 499  c     195 

in  this  respect  may  have  enduring  results  for  harm,  physical 
and  moral.  For  it  is  at  this  period  that  education  truly 
begins;  not,  as  some  would  have  it,  at  the  seventh  year — 
or  the  seventeenth ! 


§  15.     The  Tutor  and  his  Relation  to  the  Parents. 
499  a — c. 

But  the  most  important  of  the  forces  that  mould  the 
development  of  the  child  is  the  influence  of  the  tutor.  In 
choosing  him  we  cannot  show  too  great  diligence,  enquire  too 
carefully,  or  apply  too  rigorous  tests.  The  right  person  once 
secured,  we  are  not  to  conclude  that  all  is  done.  Two  cautions, 
indeed,  seem  necessary.  First,  that  masters,  like  doctors,  must 
not  be  changed  except  for  serious  cause.  The  repeated  be- 
ginnings-afresh  are  as  the  weaving  and  unweaving  of  Penelope's 
web.  I  have  known  children  who  have,  by  the  folly  of  their 
parents,  had  as  many  as  a  dozen  masters  before  they  were  as 
many  years  of  age.  Secondly,  the  responsibility  of  parents  for 
the  education  of  their  children  in  no  way  ceases  with  the 
appointment  of  the  master.  Let  the  father  often  visit  the 
schoolroom  and  note  the  progress  made.  Amongst  the  virtues 
praised  in  Aemilius  Paulus  this  is  recorded,  that  as  often  as  his 
duties  to  the  State  allowed  he  would  be  present  at  the  lessons 
of  his  sons.  This  was  also  the  custom  of  Pliny.  I  speak, 
however,  now  of  young  children  :  as  they  grow  up  it  is  wiser  to 
remove  them  somewhat  more  from  their  parents'  eye. 

§  16.  Individuality  of  the  Child;  its  Recognition  by 
THE  Teacher  ;  its  Importance  in  determining  the 
Choice  of  Subjects  to  be  taught.     499  c — 500  a. 

By  the  nahire  of  a  man  we  mean,  as  a  rule,  that  which  is 
common  to  Man  as  such  :  the  characteristic,  namely,  of  being 
guided  by  Reason.     But  we  may  mean  something  less  broad 

13—2 


196     De  Pueris  Instituendis,  499  d — 500  c 

than  this :  the  characteristic  peculiar  to  each  personality,  which 
we  may  call  individuality.  Thus  one  child  may  shew  a  native 
bent  to  Mathematics,  another  to  Divinity,  another  to  Rhetoric, 
or  Poetry,  another  to  War.  So  strongly  disposed  are  certain 
types  of  mind  to  certain  studies  that  they  cannot  be  won  to 
others ;  the  very  attempt  in  that  direction  sets  up  a  positive 
repulsion.  I  was  once  very  intimate  with  a  student,  who,, 
having  attained  a  high  level  in  Greek  and  Latin  scholarship, 
and  in  some  other  of  the  liberal  arts,  was  sent  by  his  patron 
the  Archbishop  to  the  University  to  study  Law.  But  this 
discipline  he  found  wholly  repugnant  to  his  nature.  "  I  am," 
he  told  me,  "  so  averse  to  the  Law  that  when  I  force  myself  to 
its  study  I  feel  as  if  a  sword  were  being  driven  through  my 
heart."  Minds  of  that  strong  determination  ought  not  to  be 
forced  against  their  instinct ;  it  is  almost  as  though  we  should 
train  a  cow  to  box  or  a  donkey  to  play  the  violin. 

The  Master  will  be  wise  to  observe  such  natural  inclination, 
such  individuality,  in  the  early  stages  of  child  life,  since  we 
learn  most  easily  the  things  which  conform  to  it.  It  is  not, 
I  believe,  a  vain  thing  to  try  and  infer  from  the  face  and 
bearing  of  a  boy  what  disposition  he  will  show.  Nature  has 
not  omitted  to  give  us  marks  for  our  guidance  in  this  respect. 
Aristotle  wrote  a  work  on  physiognomy ;  and  Vergil  bids  us 
recognise  the  differences  which  distinguish  one  type  of  cattle 
from  another  in  regard  to  the  uses  to  which  we  may  put  them. 
However,  I  am  personally  of  opinion  that  where  the  method  is 
sound,  where  teaching  and  practice  go  hand  in  hand,  any 
discipline  may  ordinarily  be  acquired  by  the  flexible  intellect 
of  man.  What,  indeed,  should  be  beyond  his  powers  when, 
as  we  are  told,  an  elephant  has  been  trained  to  walk  a  tight- 
rope? 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  499  d — 500  c     197 


§17.  The  Effects  of  Training  upon  Nature  in  Human 
Beings  are  certain  and  are  far-reaching.  500  a — 
501  A. 

Making  all  allowance,  however,  for  the  factor  of  nature  in 
education,  which  is,  as  we  said,  self-determined,  it  is  not 
questioned  that  the  other  two.  Training  and  Practice,  are 
under  human  control.  Training,  or  Reason  brought  to  bear 
upon  Nature,  implies  capacity  for  learning ;  practice,  readiness 
to  self-exertion.  "But,"  it  is  asked,  "can  you  begin  Education 
at  an  age  when  capacity  for  learning  has  not  yet  developed, 
and  when  continuous  exertion  cannot  be  expected?"  My 
reply  to  this  is  that  children  are  universally  taught  manners 
and  conduct  at  the  same  age;  and  this  implies  capacity  for 
effort  and  for  learning.  A  rudimentary  capacity,  I  admit : 
but  we  are  only  considering  rudiments  of  Letters  and  of 
philosophy,  or  of  morals  and  duty.  Animals  are  trained  by 
degrees  according  to  their  powers,  and  so  should  children  be 
inured  slowly  to  study.  Nature  has  implanted  in  the  young 
an  ability  of  their  own.  It  is  not  for  them,  I  allow,  to  learn 
the  Ethics  of  Aristotle  or  the  Epistles  of  St  Paul.  But  if,  for 
instance,  you  correct  their  manners  at  table,  they  obey  and 
amend ;  when  they  go  to  church  they  learn  to  bend  the  knee 
and  to  bear  themselves  reverently.  Such  rudiments  of  modesty 
and  piety  the  child  acquires  before  he  can  speak  properly,  and, 
thus  early  learnt,  they  abide  in  mind  and  habit  until,  as  the 
boy  grows  older,  they  form  a  living  part  of  his  higher  nature. 
Notice  Nature's  teaching.  We  see  how  at  first  the  newly-born 
child  knows  no  difference  between  his  parents  and  strangers. 
By  degrees  he  distinguishes  his  mother,  then  his  father. 
Respect,  obedience,  affection  follow.  From  his  parents  he 
learns  to  repress  anger  and  vindictiveness,  to  make  up  a 
quarrel  with  a  kiss ;  he  learns  to  listen  without  chattering ; 
to  rise  in  the  presence  of  his  elders ;  to  lift  his  cap  as  he 


198     De  Pueris  Instituendis,   500  c — 501  f 

passes  a  Calvary.  Thus  it  is  established  that  what  is  poured 
into  our  nature,  so  to  say,  in  our  earliest  years  becomes  an 
integral  part  of  us.  Hence  the  error,  the  grave  error,  of  the 
opinion  which  maintains  that  the  halting  steps  of  the  child 
avail  nothing  to  the  progress  of  the  boy.  "  It  is  always  best 
to  use  the  best,"  even  from  the  very  first.  For  that  habit  will 
endure  longest  which  you  impart  whilst  the  nature  is  yet  tender, 
void,  and  eager  to  imitate  the  actions  of  others.  Clay,  perhaps, 
may  be  sometimes  made  too  moist  to  retain  the  mould  im- 
pressed upon  it ;  but  I  doubt  if  there  be  any  period  of  a  child's 
progress  when  he  is  too  young  to  learn.  "  No  age,"  said 
Seneca,  "is  too  late  for  learning."  Perhaps.  But  it  is  my 
conviction  that  no  age  is  too  early,  in  respect,  that  is,  of  that 
knowledge  which  Nature  has  fittingly  prescribed  for  it.  By 
which  I  mean,  that  nature  has  planted  in  the  youngest  child 
an  ape-like  instinct  of  imitation  and  a  delight  in  activity. 
From  this  quality  springs  his  first  capacity  for  learning.  Hence 
as  soon  as  he  is  born  the  child  may  be  trained  in  conduct ; 
and  as  soon  as  he  can  talk  he  may  by  virtue  of  the  same 
imitative  instinct  be  trained  in  speech  and  letters.  Now  note 
this  analogy.  As  in  the  nursling  action  anticipates  speech, 
so  throughout  life  conduct  takes  the  prior  place,  and  learning 
and  the  liberal  arts  must  prove  themselves  her  hand-maidens, 
lest  erudition  haply  work  ill  rather  than  good  to  him  who 
pursues  it. 

§  18.     The  Age  at  which  Instruction  should  begin 
to  be  considered.     50i  a — c. 

The  opinion  is  widely  held  that  children  should  not  be  set 
to  learn  till  they  are  seven  years  of  age.  Hesiod  is  said  to 
have  been  the  author  of  this  view,  but  even  if  that  be  true, 
I  should  not  follow  him  against  my  own  judgment.  It  is 
probable,  however,  that  this  contention  implies  no  more  than 
this,  that  the  laborious  side  of  studies,  such  as  learning  by 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  5CX)C — 501  f     199 

heart,  repetition,  long  written  exercises,  should  be  avoided  as 
far  as  possible  in  early  education.  If  figures  are  to  be  men- 
tioned at  all,  we  may  remember  that  Chrysippus  judges  the 
first  three  years  to  be  the  province  of  the  nurse,  during  which 
period  the  child  should  imbibe  right  habits  and  lay  the  founda- 
tions for  that  edifice  of  character  and  learning  which  will  be 
raised  later.  And  I  freely  allow  that  this  stage  of  home  education 
is  of  profound  importance. 

§  19.  Right  Expression  as  the  Main  End  of  Early 
Instruction,  and  its  Importance  for  Subsequent 
Progress.     501  c— 502  b. 

The  aim  of  instruction  at  the  first  stage  should  be  to  teach 
children  to  speak  clearly  and  accurately,  a  matter  in  which  both 
parent  and  nurse  share  the  responsibility.  Language,  indeed, 
is  not  simply  an  end  in  itself,  as  we  see  when  we  reflect  that 
through  its  neglect  whole  disciplines  have  been  lost,  or,  at  least, 
corrupted.  Think  what  Theology,  Medicine  and  Law  have 
lost  from  this  cause.  Upon  the  question  of  early  training  in 
expression,  Cicero  tells  us  that  those  famous  orators,  the 
Gracchi,  owed  their  distinction  largely  to  Cornelia :  "  their 
first  school  was  their  mother's  knee."  Laelia  is  a  similar 
instance,  for  she,  like  Mutia  and  Licinia,  was  brought  up  as 
a  girl  in  an  atmosphere  of  dignified  and  refined  conversation. 
We  must  not  forget  that  besides  parents,  tutors,  serving-women, 
and  playfellows,  all  have  marked  influence  upon  a  child's 
manner  of  speaking.  For  it  is  in  speech  that  the  imitative 
instinct  is  specially  active.  We  know  that  a  German  boy  will 
pick  up  French  unconsciously  almost,  but  most  successfully, 
if  only  he  have  opportunity  when  very  young.  Now  if  this  be 
possible  in  a  language  which  is  barbarous  and  unformed,  in 
which  spelling  never  follows  pronunciation,  whose  sounds  are 
mere  noises  for  which  the  throat  of  man  was  never  framed, 
how  much  more  readily  should  he  learn  the  tongues  of  Greece 


2CX)    De  Pueris  Instituendis,   501  f — 503  b 

and  Rome  ?  Mithridates  could  administer  justice  in  two-and- 
twenty  dialects  and  languages :  Themistocles,  when  well  ad- 
vanced in  years,  learnt  Persian  in  a  twelvemonth.  To  what, 
then,  may  not  the  plastic  mind  and  tongue  of  a  boy  attain  ? 
For  the  learning  of  a  language  is  partly,  as  we  have  suggested, 
a  matter  of  imitation ;  and  it  is  partly  a  matter  of  memory.  It 
is  as  instinctive  with  children  to  imitate  as  it  is  easy  for  them 
to  remember ;  while  to  a  man  of  my  age  it  is  difficult  to  recall 
exactly  a  fact  read  two  days  ago.  How  few  people  do  we  meet 
who  have  been  able  to  learn  a  new  language,  especially  in 
respect  of  accent,  in  middle  life  !  Cato  the  elder  may  be 
quoted  as  one  of  these ;  but  his  namesake  of  Utica  is  a  far 
more  trustworthy  pattern  for  us,  as  he  was  the  more  learned 
and  eloquent  of  the  two,  and  he  was  taught  Greek  from  the 
cradle. 


§  20.  The  Importance  of  this  Early  Training  ought 
TO  lead  Parents  to  ask  themselves  how  far  they 
can    follow    the    example    of    the    Ancients    in 

BECOMING     themselves     THE      INSTRUCTORS      OF      THEIR 

Children.     502  b — 503  b. 

But  we  may  not  forget  that  children  are  prone  to  follow  the 
allurement  of  the  senses  rather  than  the  rule  of  reason ;  to 
store  up  in  mind  what  is  trivial  or  bad  rather  than  what  is  of 
enduring  worth.  This  fact  of  human  nature  sorely  puzzled 
the  ancient  philosophers,  but  has  its  key  in  the  Christian 
doctrine  of  Original  Sin.  True  as  this  explanation  is,  we  are 
not  to  forget  the  part  played  by  faulty  training,  particularly  in 
the  first  and  most  impressionable  stage.  Wherefore,  I  bid 
you  recall  how  Alexander  allowed  that  he  had  been  unable  to 
forget  some  things  which  he  had  learnt,  to  his  hurt,  from  his 
tutor  in  early  boyhood ;  and  how  the  Romans  in  the  days  of 
their  prime  refused  to  yield  the  charge  of  their  sons  to  any 
hired  person.     In  those  days  the  parents  and  other  kinsmen 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,   501  F — 503  B      201 

taught  the  growing  boy ;  for  instance,  it  was  held  the  truest 
honour  to  the  family  that  as  many  children  as  possible  of  the 
name  should  have  repute  for  learning.  Nowadays  the  mark  of 
a  noble  house  seems  to  consist  in  exhibiting  coats  of  arms,  in 
giving  feasts,  in  play  and  sport ;  and  the  only  service  which 
elders  perform  for  their  sons  is  to  provide  them  with  rich 
marriages.  Meantime  it  is  thought  natural  that  as  a  child  he 
should  be  left  in  charge  of  a  man  ignorant  of  learning  and  of 
illiberal  condition.  In  old  days  careful  parents  trained  up  a 
slave  specially  fit  in  learning  that  he  might  act  as  a  tutor,  or 
they  bought  one  already  skilled.  But  it  were  wiser  that  the 
parents  should  qualify  themselves  to  this  task.  If  it  be 
objected  that  time  is  lacking,  I  point  to  the  flagrant  waste  of 
leisure  in  play  and  entertainments, '  and  in  the  stupid  social 
"duties  of  our  station."  He  has  but  lukewarm  love  for  his 
son  who  grudges  the  time  for  teaching  him.  I  admit  that  the 
Romans  had  the  great  advantage  of  a  single  tongue  under- 
stood universally  ;  but,  in  spite  of  drawbacks  in  our  own  day, 
certain  parents  of  distinction  have  undertaken  the  duty  of 
training  their  own  children.  Amongst  these  I  name  Thomas 
More.  He,  although  deeply  occupied  in  affairs  of  the  State, 
devoted  his  leisure  to  the  instruction  of  his  wife,  his  son,  and 
his  daughters,  both  in  the  uprightness  of  life  and  in  the 
liberal  studies  of  Greek  and  Latin.  The  common  tongue  of 
the  people  may  be  left  to  be  picked  up  in  the  ordinary 
intercourse  of  life. 

Should,  however,  neither  parent  be  a  suitable  instructor  to 
the  child,  then,  I  admit,  we  must  secure  the  services  of  an 
able  and  experienced  teacher.  But  the  father  should  hesitate 
to  take  an  untried  man.  In  many  things,  perhaps,  negligence 
may  find  its  pardon  ;  but  here  the  eyes  of  Argus  himself  are 
wanted.  There  is  a  proverb  that  teaches  us  that  in  war  a 
general  may  not  make  iwo  mistakes.  In  planning  his  son's 
education  a  father  dare  hardly  make  one. 


202     De  Pueris  Instituendis,   503  b — 504  A 


§21.  The  Objection  that  Health  is  endangered  by 
Close  Application  on  the  part  of  the  Young 
Child.     503  b — e. 

We  have  to  meet  an  argument  against  early  training  drawn 
from  the  superior  importance  of  health.  Personally  I  venture 
to  regard  the  mental  advantages  gained  as  outweighing  some 
slight  risks  in  the  matter  of  physical  vigour.  We  are  not 
concerned  with  developing  athletes,  but  scholars  and  men 
competent  to  affairs,  for  whom  we  desire  adequate  constitu- 
tions indeed,  but  not  the  physique  of  a  Milo.  I  should, 
certainly,  always  advise  moderation  in  the  amount  of  mental 
exertion  demanded,  but  I  have  little  patience  with  critics  who 
only  become  anxious  about  the  youthful  constitution  when 
education  is  mooted ;  but  who  are  indifferent  to  the  far  more 
certain  risks  of  over-feeding,  late  hours,  and  unsuitable  dress- 
ing, which  are  the  common  indulgences  allowed  to  children  in 
the  classes  about  w^hom  I  am  here  concerned.  In  the  same 
way  some  parents  profess  alarm  lest  premature  study  affect  the 
complexion  or  figure  of  their  child.  This  is  justifiable  to 
some  degree,  but  we  ought  not  to  think  too  much  of  such 
attractions  in  a  boy.  Here  again  evil  habits,  brawling,  and 
intemperance  are  far  more  serious  causes  of  this  kind  of 
mischief. 

But  if  the  teaching  be  of  a  wise  sort  the  danger  of  harm 
will  be  wholly  negligeable.  For  the  effort  required  will  be  but 
slight,  subjects  will  be  few,  attractively  taught,  and  adapted  to 
the  age  and  tastes  of  the  scholar.  Such  study  may  hardly  be 
distinguished  from  play,  and  is  a  source  of  enjoyment  to  the 
child. 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  503  b — 504  a     203 


§  22.     The  Disposition  of  the  Teacher.      503  e — 504  a. 

Seeing,  then,  that  children  in  the  earliest  stage  must  be 
beguiled  and  not  driven  to  learning,  the  first  requisite  in  the 
Master  is  a  gentle  sympathetic  manner,  the  second  a  know- 
ledge of  wise  and  attractive  methods.  Possessing  these  two 
important  qualifications  he  will  be  able  to  win  the  pupil  to  find 
pleasure  in  his  task.  It  is  a  hindrance  to  a  boy's  progress, 
which  nothing  will  ever  nullify,  when  the  master  succeeds  in 
making  his  pupil  hate  learning  before  he  is  old  enough  to 
like  it  for  its  own  sake.  For  a  boy  is  often  drawn  to  a  subject 
first  for  his  master's  sake,  and  afterwards  for  its  own.  Learn- 
ing, like  many  other  things,  wins  our  liking  for  the  reason  that 
it  is  offered  to  us  by  one  we  love.  But,  on  the  other  hand, 
there  is  a  type  of  man  of  manners  so  uncouth,  of  expression 
so  forbidding,  of  speech  so  surly,  that  he  repels  even  when  he 
by  no  means  intends  it.  Now  men  of  that  stamp  are  wholly 
unfit  to  be  teachers  of  children ;  a  man  who  loves  his  horse 
would  hardly  put  such  a  man  to  have  charge  of  his  stable. 
Yet  there  are  parents  who  think  such  a  temper  as  I  have 
described  well  adapted  to  breaking  in  the  young  child,  thinking, 
perhaps,  that  seriousness  of  that  sort  betokens  a  proper 
gravity.  Therein  may  lie  a  great  error,  inasmuch  as  that 
demeanour  may  cloak  a  depraved  nature,  which,  delighting  in 
tyranny,  cows  and  breaks  the  spirit  of  the  pupil.  Fear  is  of  no 
real  avail  in  education :  not  even  parents  can  train  their 
children  by  this  motive.  Love  must  be  the  first  influence; 
followed  and  completed  by  a  trustful  and  affectionate  respect, 
which  compels  obedience  far  more  surely  than  dread  can 
ever  do. 


204     De  Pueris  InsHtuendis,   504  a — 504  f 


§  23.     The  Evil  Condition  of  the  Schools,  especially 
THE  Private  Schools,  in  the  Present  Day.     504  a — d. 

What  shall  we  say  then  of  the  type  of  school  too  common 
at  the  present  time  ?  A  boy  scarce  four  years  old  is  sent  to 
school  to  a  master  about  whose  qualifications  for  the  work  no 
one  knows  anything.  Often  he  is  a  man  of  uncouth  manners, 
not  always  sober ;  maybe  he  is  an  invalid,  or  crippled,  or  even 
mentally  deficient.  Anyone  is  good  enough  to  put  over  the 
grammar  school  in  popular  opinion.  Such  a  man,  finding 
himself  clothed  with  an  unlocked  for  and  unaccustomed 
authority,  treats  his  charges  as  we  should  expect.  The  school 
is,  in  effect,  a  torture  chamber  ;  blows  and  shouts,  sobs  and 
howls,  fill  the  air.  Then  it  is  wondered  that  the  growing  boy 
hates  learning  ;  and  that  in  riper  years  he  hates  it  still.  There 
are  parents  who  will  send  their  children  to  learn  reading  and 
writing  at  a  dame's  school,  kept  by  some  incompetent,  ill- 
tempered,  perhaps  drunken  creature.  Now  as  a  general 
principle  I  should  affirm  that  it  is  contrary  to  Nature  that  men 
should  be  placed  under  the  exclusive  control  of  women ;  for 
women  are  not  only  lacking  in  the  necessary  self-control,  but 
when  aroused  are  prone  to  extreme  vindictiveness  and  cruelty. 
Nor  can  I  personally,  though  few  agree  with  me,  advise  parents 
to  send  their  sons  to  school  in  Monasteries  or  in  the  Houses 
of  the  Brethren.  For,  whilst  allowing  the  teaching  Brothers 
to  be  often  good,  kindly  men,  they  are  usually  too  narrow  and 
ignorant  to  be  fit  to  educate  children.  The  monks  make  a 
good  income  out  of  their  schools,  which  are  conducted  no  one 
knows  how,  and  are  jealously  hidden  away  in  the  inner  re- 
cesses of  the  convent.  So  I  strongly  urge :  Choose  for  your 
boy  a  public  school,  or  keep  him  at  home. 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,   504  a — 504  f     205 


§  24.  Excessive  Punishment  the  Characteristic  of 
Worthless  Schools  and  of  Weak  Teachers.  504  d 
—507  E. 

A  poor  master,  we  are  prepared  to  find,  relies  almost 
wholly  upon  fear  of  punishment  as  the  motive  to  work.  To 
frighten  an  entire  class  is  easier  than  to  teach  one  boy  properly : 
for  the  latter  is,  and  always  must  be,  a  task  as  serious  as  it  is 
honourable.  It  is  equally  true  of  States :  the  rule  which 
carries  the  respect  and  consent  of  the  citizens  demands  higher 
qualities  in  the  Prince  than  does  the  tyranny  of  force. 

Scotsmen  say  that  they  find  the  French  schoolmaster  the 
most  thorough-going  flogger  in  Europe :  to  which  the  Gaul 
replies  that,  if  it  is  true,  it  is  because  the  Frenchman  knows  his 
Scot.  Perhaps  there  is  a  difference  in  the  method  by  which 
the  youth  of  different  countries  needs  to  be  handled,  though 
for  my  part  I  consider  it  far  more  a  matter  of  individual  than 
of  national  temperament.  For  instance,  there  are  natures 
which  you  will  rather  break  than  bend  by  flogging  :  whilst  by 
kindness  and  wise  stimulus  you  may  do  anything  with  them. 
I  confess  that  I  personally  am  constituted  in  this  way.  Once, 
my  master,  with  whom  I  was  really  on  very  good  terms,  a  man, 
too,  who  had  formed  a  flattering  idea  of  my  capacities,  con- 
ceived a  wish  to  try  how  far  I  could  stand  the  test  of  a  very  severe 
discipline.  So,  watching  his  opportunity,  he  charged  me  with 
some  offence  that  I  had  not  even  dreamt  of  committing,  and 
thrashed  me.  Now,  that  piece  of  tyranny  then  and  there 
annihilated  in  me  all  further  interest  in  learning,  and  so 
dejected,  so  broken  was  I,  that  I  gradually  fell  into  a  low 
feverish  state.  So  when  my  master — no  fool  and  not  a  bad 
man  at  heart,  as  I  have  said — realised  what  he  had  done,  he 
came  forward  and  admitted  his  mistake.  "  I  nearly  succeeded 
in  ruining  his  disposition  before  I  had  learnt  to  understand  it," 


2o6     De  Pueris  Instituendis,  504  f — 507  a 

he  said.     But  his  repentance  came  too  late  to  alter  the  con- 
sequences, so  far  as  my  attitude  to  him  was  concerned. 

Do  schoolmasters  consider  how  many  earnest,  studious 
natures  have  been  by  treatment  of  this  type — the  hangman 
type — crushed  into  indifference?  Masters  who  are  conscious 
of  their  own  incompetence  are  generally  the  worst  floggers. 
What  else,  indeed,  can  they  do  ?  They  cannot  teach,  so  they 
beat.  By  degrees  it  becomes  a  positive  pleasure  to  them  to 
torture,  especially  when  they  are  self-indulgent  men,  or 
slothful  or  cruel  by  nature. 

I  know  particularly  well  a  certain  Churchman  of  great 
distinction  who  selected  the  masters  of  his  school  from 
amongst  the  more  accomplished  wielders  of  the  birch. 
Flogging,  in  his  educational  doctrine,  was  the  prime  instru- 
ment for  "  softening  and  purifying  "  boys'  natures.  It  was  his 
practice  when  the  mid-day  meal  was  over  to  order  one  or 
other  of  the  boys  to  be  brought  out  and  cruelly  thrashed :  the 
innocence  or  guilt  of  the  boy  was  not  in  question.  I  was 
present  on  one  occasion  when  he  had  before  him  a  lad  of 
about  ten  years  of  age,  only  just  admitted  to  the  school.  My 
churchman  proceeded  to  tell  us  that  the  boy  had  been  carefully 
brought  up,  and  had  been  specially  commended  to  his  charge 
by  his  mother.  A  wholly  groundless  complaint  was  laid 
against  him.  The  birch  was  thereupon  handed  to  the  wretched 
ministrant  charged  with  this  duty,  who  so  lost  all  self-control 
in  his  task  that  the  churchman  himself  had  to  call  halt.  The 
boy  swooned  away.  Then  said  the  divine  :  "  The  lad,  of 
course,  has  done  nothing  to  deserve  all  this,  but  it  is  necessary 
to  curb  his  spirit  by  wholesome  discipline."  But  who  would 
dream  of  training  a  horse  or  a  slave  after  this  fashion?  By 
patience  and  kindliness,  and  not  by  violence,  men  tame  the 
lion's  whelp  and  the  young  elephant.  No  beast  is  so  wild  but 
that  it  may  be  subdued  by  gentle  handling,  and  none  so  tame 
but  that  cruelty  will  rouse  it  to  anger. 

It  is,  indeed,  the  mark  of  the  servile  nature  to  be  drilled  by 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  504  f — 507  a     207 

fear;  why  then  do  we  suffer  children  (whose  very  name  im- 
ports free  men,  "  liberi  " — those  born  fit  for  a  "  liberal " 
training — ),  to  be  treated  as  slaves  might  be  ?  Yet  even  slaves, 
who  are  men  like  the  rest  of  us,  are  by  wise  masters  freed 
from  something  of  their  servile  state  by  humane  control.  Let 
a  father  stand  towards  his  son  in  a  more  kindly  relation  than 
that  of  a  master  to  his  serfs.  If  we  put  away  tyrants  from 
their  thrones,  why  do  we  erect  a  new  tyranny  for  our  own  sons? 
Is  it  not  meet  that  Christian  peoples  cast  forth  from  their 
midst  the  whole  doctrine  of  slavery  in  all  its  forms?  Paul 
shews  us  that  a  slave  is  a  "  dear  brother "' ;  and  that  all 
Christian  believers,  whether  bond  or  free,  are  fellow-servants 
to  one  Lord.  In  speaking  of  parents  as  regards  their  children 
the  Apostle  warns  them  that  they  "  provoke  not  their  children 
to  wrath,  but  bring  them  up  in  the  chastening  and  admonition 
of  the  Lord."  And  what  the  "  chastening"  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
should  imply,  he  may  readily  perceive  who  considers  with  what 
gentleness,  forgiveness,  affection,  He  trained,  cherished,  and 
bore  with,  his  own  disciples.  Contrast  with  this  the  story  of 
Auxon,  a  Roman  knight,  who  for  cruelty  towards  his  own  son 
was  dragged  by  the  crowd  into  the  Forum,  fiercely  handled, 
and  with  difficulty  rescued  with  his  life.  I  fear  that  there 
be  many  Auxons  living  still.  I  could  tell  you  certain  stories  of 
wicked  cruelty  by  schoolmasters  which  it  is  hard  to  believe,  but 
for  which  I  vouch  my  own  personal  knowledge.  In  one  case 
in  especial,  where  foul  torture  was  employed,  the  child,  whom  I 
knew, — he  was  twelve  years  of  age — very  nearly  died  from  the 
ill-usage.  He  was  the  innocent  victim  of  some  prank  played 
by  a  school-fellow,  who  was  a  favourite  with  the  master,  an 
incompetent  and  worthless  creature,  and,  therefore,  given  to 
violent  floggings  to  enforce  his  authority.  I  can  only  say  that 
hanging  the  luckless  child  up  by  the  arms  and  flogging  him 
as  he  hung  till  the  brutal  master  was  too  tired  to  go  on,  was 
the  least  disgusting  part  of  the  punishment.  The  Scythians 
or  Phrygians  of  old  were  less  inhuman.     Once  more,  I  cannot 


2o8     De  Pueris  Instituendis,   507  b — 508  d 

forget  the  rough  horse-play  which  awaited  every  newly-arrived 
student  at  my  old  College.  The  brutality  of  it  and  the  in- 
tolerable torments  devised  by  the  youthful  wits  I  do  not  care 
to  particularise.  Risks  of  permanent  bodily  injury  were  con- 
stantly experienced  :  and  the  ceremony  ended  in  a  noisy 
carouse.  It  was  an  "initiation,"  forsooth,  into  a  course  of 
training  in  the  liberal  arts  :  it  was  naturally  well-adapted  to 
turn  out  the  flogging  masters  whom  I  have  just  described. 
The  worst  of  it  was  that  the  authorities  winked  at  the  scandal; 
it  was  "  the  tradition,"  and  it  was,  therefore,  "  unwise  to  inter- 
fere," and  so  on.  As  though  the  fact  that  an  evil  tradition  is 
deep-rooted  in  the  past  does  not  make  the  stronger  call  upon 
sensible  men  for  its  abolition.  Should  not  they  who  pursue 
the  studies  we  term  "  liberal  "  cultivate  a  type  of  humour  also 
to  match? 

§  25.     The  Permissible  Instruments  of  Discipline. 
507  E— 508  D. 

Teaching  by  beating,  therefore,  is  not  a  liberal  education. 
Nor  should  the  schoolmaster  indulge  in  too  strong  and  too 
frequent  language  of  blame.  Medicine  constantly  repeated 
loses  its  force.  You  may  quote  against  me  the  old  proverb : 
"  He  that  spareth  the  rod  hateth  his  own  son."  Well,  perhaps, 
that  may  have  been  true  of  Jews.  But  I  do  not  accept  it  as 
true  for  Christians  to-day.  If  we  are  to  "  bow  the  necks  "  and 
"chastise,"  as  we  are  bidden  to  do,  let  us  see  to  it  that  the  rod 
we  use  is  the  word  of  guidance  or  of  rebuke,  such  as  a  free 
man  may  obey,  that  our  discipline  be  of  kindness  and  not  of 
vindictiveness.  Lycon,  the  philosopher,  sets  forward  these 
two  spurs  to  industry  :  shame,  and  desire  for  praise.  Shame  is 
the  fear  of  just  reproach  ;  by  praise  a  boy  is  quickened  to 
excel  in  all  he  does.  Let  these,  then,  be  the  schoolmaster's 
weapons  to-day.  And  I  can  add  another :  "  unwearied  pains 
conquer  all  things,"  says  the  poet.     Let  us  watch,  let  us  en- 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,   507  b — 508  d     209 

courage,  let  us  press  and  yet  again  press,  that  by  learning,  by 
repeating,  by  diligent  listening,  the  boy  may  feel  himself 
carried  onward  towards  his  goal.  Let  him  learn  to  respect 
and  to  love  integrity  and  knowledge,  to  hate  ignorance  and 
dishonour.  Bid  him  regard  those  who  are  lauded  for  their 
virtues,  be  warned  by  those  who  are  denounced  for  their 
ill-doing.  Set  before  him  the  example  of  men  to  whom  learn- 
ing has  brought  high  praise,  dignity,  repute  and  position. 
Warn  him  of  the  fate  of  those  who  by  the  neglect  of  high 
wisdom  have  sunk  into  contempt,  poverty,  disgrace  and  evil 
life.  These  are  your  instruments  of  discipline,  my  Christian 
teacher,  worthy  of  your  calling  and  of  your  flock.  But  should 
none  of  these  avail,  then,  if  it  must  be  so,  let  the  rod  be  used 
with  due  regard  to  self-respect  in  the  manner  of  it.  But  I  am, 
at  heart,  with  Quintilian  in  deprecating  flogging  under  any 
conditions.  If  then  you  ask,  "  What  is  to  be  done  with  boys 
who  respond  to  no  other  spur  ? "  My  answer  is :  "  What 
would  you  do  if  an  ox  or  an  ass  strayed  into  your  school- 
room ?  "  Turn  him  out  to  the  plough  or  the  pack-saddle,  no 
doubt.  Well,  so  there  are  boys  good  only  for  the  farm  and 
manual  toil :  send  your  dunces  there  for  their  own  good. 
"Yes,"  says  the  master,  "but  I  want  my  fees."  There  I 
cannot  help  you  :  your  duty  is  t^  the  boy.  But  I  fear  that 
this  matter  of  profit  lies  at  the  root  of  the  whole  matter. 

§  26.    The  Provision  of  Fit  Teachers  of  Youth  is   a 
National  Duty  in  which  both  Church  and  State 

SHOULD    share    THE  JOINT    RESPONSIBILITY.       508  D — E. 

The  ancients  drew  the  ideal  of  the  wise  man  and  of  the 
Orator — types  never  realised  in  fact.  So  it  is  easier  to  outline 
the  ideal  schoolmaster  than  to  find  him  in  reality.  Which 
brings  me  to  claim  it  as  a  duty  incumbent  on  Statesmen  and 
Churchmen  alike  to  provide  that  there  be  a  due  supply  of  men 
qualified  to  educate  the  youth  of  the  nation.     It  is  a  public 

w.  14 


210     De  Pueris  Instituendis,  508  e — 509  f 


obligation  in  no  way  inferior,  say,  to  the  ordering  of  the  army. 
Vespasian  is  an  example,  in  that  out  of  his  Treasury  he  main- 
tained Greek  and  Latin  teachers  ;  and  the  younger  Pliny  of 
his  private  fortune  did  the  same.  And  if  the  community  be 
backward  in  this  respect,  yet  should  every  head  of  a  house- 
hold do  all  that  he  can  to  provide  for  the  education  of  his 
own. 

Now  you  may  rejoin,  that  men  of  poor  station,  whose 
efforts  are  absorbed  in  nurturing  their  families,  can  do  nothing 
for  them  besides.  I  have  nothing  to  say  except  this  :  "  We 
must  do  as  we  may,  when  we  cannot  do  as  we  would."  But 
the  liberality  of  the  rich  can  be  most  wisely  exercised  here,  in 
enabling  innate  powers  to  attain  their  due  development  by 
removing  the  hindrance  imposed  by  poverty. 


§  27.     The  Qualities  Desirable  in  a  Good  Master. 
508  E— 509  B. 

Although  I  have  urged  the  need  of  gentleness,  let  it  not 
decline  into  unwise  familiarity  towards  the  pupil ;  a  degree  of 
formal  authority  must  be  maintained,  such  as  marked  the 
relation  of  Sarpedon  towards  the  young  Cato,  who  rendered 
his  master  great  affection  and  equal  reverence.  What  would 
the  master  do  who  can  only  teach  by  flogging,  if  he  were  set 
up  as  tutor  in  a  royal  household,  where  no  such  discipline  is 
for  a  moment  allowed?  "Oh,"  he  rejoins,  "such  pupils  are 
not  of  the  common  order."  "How  then?  Are  not  the 
children  of  a  citizen  men  ?  Do  not  citizens  love  their  sons  no 
less  than  kings  ?  "  If  they  be  poor  men,  the  more  need  have 
they  of  learning  in  order  to  minister  to  their  deficiency;  if 
they  be  rich,  in  order  to  learn  to  govern  their  wealth  aright. 
Not  a  few  born  in  low  estate  are  called  to  high  station,  as  to 
Bishoprics.  All  men  do  not  rise  to  so  great  distinction,  yet 
ought   all  to  gain  by  right   education  the  opportunity  of  so 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,   508  e — 509  f      211 

rising.  Now  I  have  said  enough  of  that  evil  class  of  school- 
master which  only  knows  how  to  beat:  but  I  cannot  too 
seriously  deplore  that  the  scandal  is  in  our  day  so  widely 
spread. 


§  28.     The  Need  of  Sympathy  in  one  who  shall 
TEACH  Young  Children.     509  b — f. 

It  is  the  mark  of  a  good  teacher  to  stand  towards  his 
charge  somewhat  in  the  relation  of  a  parent :  both  learning 
and  teaching  are  made  easier  thereby.  He  will  also  in  a 
sense  become  a  boy  again  that  he  may  draw  his  pupil  to 
himself.  Though  this  by  no  means  justifies  the  choice  of  the 
old  and  infirm  as  teachers  of  youth :  these  indeed  have  no 
need  to  simulate  a  childish  temper,  they  are  only  too  truly 
once  more  in  their  second  infancy.  Rather  should  the  master 
be  in  the  full  vigour  of  early  manhood,  able  to  sympathise 
naturally  with  youth,  ready  to  adapt  himself  to  its  demands. 
He  will  follow  in  his  first  instruction  the  methods  of  the 
mother  in  the  earliest  training  of  her  nursling.  As  she 
prattles  baby  language,  stirs  and  softens  baby  food,  stoops  and 
guides  the  tottering  steps — so  will  the  master  act  in  things  of 
the  mind.  Slowly  is  the  transition  made  to  walking  alone,  or 
to  eating  solid  food ;  the  tender  frame  is  thus  carefully 
hardened.  In  exactly  the  same  manner  instruction  is  at  first 
simple,  taught  by  way  of  play,  taught  by  degrees.  The  sense 
of  effort  is  lost  in  the  pleasure  of  such  natural  exercise :  in- 
sensibly the  mind  becomes  equal  to  harder  tasks.  Wholly 
wrong  are  those  masters  who  expect  their  little  pupils  to  act  as 
though  they  were  but  diminutive  adults,  who  forget  the 
meaning  of  youth,  who  have  no  standard  of  what  can  be  done 
or  be  understood  except  that  of  their  own  minds.  Such  a 
master  will  upbraid,  exact,  punish,  as  though  he  were  dealing 
with  students  as  old  as  himself,  and  forgets  that  he  was  ever 
himself  a  child.     Pliny  warned  such  a  one  when  he  spoke  thus 

14—2 


212     De  Pueris  Instituendis,   509  f — 510F 

to  a  master :  "  Remember  that  your  pupil  is  but  a  youth 
still,  and  that  you  were  once  one  yourself."  But  how  often 
does  the  schoolmaster  of  to-day  prove  by  his  harsh  discipline 
that  he  wholly  forgets  this  simple  truth ! 


§  29.     What  subjects  may  be  most  suitably  chosen  for 
THE  First  Steps  in  Education.     509  f — 510  d. 

To  treat  next  of  the  matter  which  may  be  wisely  taught 
the  little  child.  First  of  all,  I  give  the  leading  place  to  practice 
in  spoken  language,  which  it  is  so  great  a  task  for  adults  to 
accomplish.  As  I  have  already  said,  this  is  an  exercise  of  the 
child's  powers  of  imitation,  which  it  shares  with  certain  birds. 
As  an  aid  to  this  study  can  anything  be  better  adapted  to  the 
youthful  capacity  than  the  reading  of  ancient  Fables?  For 
they  appeal  by  their  romance,  they  are  good  for  moral  lessons, 
they  help  vocabulary.  There  is  nothing  a  boy  more  readily 
listens  to  than  an  apologue  of  Aesop,  who  under  cover  of 
pleasant  story  teaches  the  youth  the  very  essence  of  philosophy. 
You  relate,  again,  how  Circe  transforms  the  comrades  of 
Ulysses  into  swine  and  other  animals.  It  is  a  story  to  rouse 
interest  and,  perhaps,  amusement ;  but  the  lesson  is  therein 
driven  home  that  men  who  will  not  yield  to  the  guidance  of 
reason,  but  follow  the  enticements  of  the  senses,  are  no  more 
than  brute  beasts.  Could  a  stoic  philosopher  preach  a  graver 
truth  ?  The  poetry  styled  Bucolic  is  easy  to  understand ; 
Comedy  is  intelligible  to  boys,  and  teaches  them  many  deep 
truths  of  life  in  its  lighter  vein.  Then  it  is  time  to  teach  the 
names  of  objects — a  subject  in  which  even  learned  men  are 
apt  to  be  uncertain.  Lastly,  short  sentences  containing  quaint 
conceits,  proverbs,  pithy  sayings,  such  as  in  ancient  times  were 
the  current  coin  of  philosophy. 

But  do  not  forget  that  children  are  not  seldom  seen  to 
show  a  peculiar  bent  to  particular  disciplines,  such  as  Music, 
Arithmetic  or  Geography.     I  have  myself  known  young  pupils 


De  PuejHs  Instituendis,   509  f — 510F     213 

who,  though  backward  in  all  that  concerned  Grammar  or  Rhe- 
toric, had  much  facility  in  these  less  rigid  yet  more  recondite 
subjects.  Nature,  therefore,  claims  the  help  of  the  school- 
master in  carrying  forward  the  special  gifts  with  which  she  has 
endowed  the  child.  By  following  the  path  which  she  points 
out  the  toil  of  learning  is  reduced :  whilst  on  the  other  hand 
nothing  can  be  well  accomplished  inviia  Minerva. 

§  30.     Pleasurable  methods  must  be  devised  in  the 
First  Stages  of  Teaching.     510  d — 511  c. 

Progress  in  learning  a  language  is  much  furthered  if  the 
child  be  brought  up  amongst  people  who  are  gifted  talkers. 
Descriptions  and  stories  are  impressed  the  better  if  to  good 
narrative  power  the  teacher  or  parent  can  add  the  help  of 
pictorial  illustration.  The  same  method  can  be  more  par- 
ticularly applied  to  the  teaching  of  natural  objects.  Names 
and  characteristics  of  trees,  flowers,  and  animals  can  be  thus 
learnt :  specially  is  this  plan  needful  where  the  creature  de- 
scribed is  wholly  unfamiliar  to  the  child,  as  for  instance  the 
rhinoceros,  the  tragelaphus,  the  onocrotalus,  the  Indian  ass, 
and  the  elephant.  A  picture  is  shown,  containing  an  elephant, 
in  combat  with  a  dragon.  At  once  the  class  shows  curiosity. 
How  shall  the  master  proceed  ?  He  states  the  Greek  and  Latin 
names  for  elephant,  giving  the  Latin  genitive  case  as  well.  He 
then  points  to  the  trunk,  giving  the  Greek  and  Latin  for  it,  and 
the  purpose  of  the  organ :  he  will  explain  that  the  elephant 
breathes  as  well  as  feeds  by  its  means.  The  tusks  are  next 
dealt  with,  the  uses  and  rarity  of  ivory ;  if  possible  he  will 
produce  something  made  of  it.  The  dragon  is  shown  to  be  of 
the  large  Indian  species.  He  states  the  Greek  and  Latin 
equivalents  for  'dragon,'  their  similarity  in  form,  and  their 
feminines.  He  will  instil  the  fact  that  between  the  dragon  and 
the  elephant  there  is,  instinctively  and  constantly,  a  ruthless 
war.     If  any  boy  is  keen  for  further  knowledge  in  the  subject, 


214         De  Pueris  Instituendis,   511  a — e 

the  Master  will  add  many  other  facts  concerning  the  nature 
and  habits  of  these  two  great  beasts.  Boys,  too,  will  generally 
be  attracted  by  pictures  of  hunting  scenes,  through  which 
a  wealth  of  information  about  trees,  plants,  birds,  and  animals 
may  be  imparted  in  a  most  delightful  and  yet  instructive 
manner.  In  choosing  subject-matter  of  this  kind  it  is  desirable 
to  take  some  pains  to  discuss  what  is  naturally  attractive  to  the 
youthful  mind,  and  discard  what  is  of  too  advanced  a  kind. 
Remember  always  that  youth  is  the  springtime  of  life,  when 
harvests  are  sown  and  flowers  bloom.  But  autumn  is  the 
season  for  ripe  fruits  and  laden  wains.  Hence,  as  only  folly 
will  look  for  purple  grapes  in  May,  so  no  Master  who  under- 
stands his  task  will  demand  the  tastes  and  powers  of  maturity 
from  the  growing  child.  Brightness,  attractiveness,  these  make 
the  only  appeals  to  a  boy  in  the  field  of  learning.  Is  not  this  why 
the  ancients  fabled  the  Muses  to  be  comely  maidens,  given  to 
the  song  and  the  dance,  and  companions  to  the  Graces  ?  It 
was  their  doctrine  also  that  excellence  in  true  learning  was 
only  to  be  attained  by  those  who  find  pleasure  in  its  pursuit ; 
and  for  this  cause  the  liberal  arts  were  by  them  called  '  Hu- 
manitas.' 

Yet  there  is  no  reason  why  in  this  early  stage  of  education 
utility  should  not  go  hand  in  hand  with  delight.  On  the 
method  which  I  have  here  sketched  nothing  hinders  that  a 
boy  learn  a  pretty  story  from  the  ancient  poets,  or  a  memorable 
tale  from  history,  just  as  readily  as  the  stupid  and  vulgar  ballad, 
or  the  old  wives'  fairy  rubbish  such  as  most  children  are  steeped 
in  nowadays  by  nurses  and  serving  women.  Who  can  think 
without  shame  of  the  precious  time  and  energy  squandered 
in  listening  to  ridiculous  riddles,  stories  of  dreams,  of  ghosts, 
witches,  fairies,  demons ;  of  foolish  tales  drawn  from  popular 
annals ;  worthless,  nay,  mischievous  stuff  of  the  kind  which  is 
poured  into  children  in  their  nursery  days  ? 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,  5 1 1  a — e  2 1 5 


§  31.     The  work  of  Educating  the  Young  is  a.  part 
OF  the  Service  we  owe  to  God.     511  c — d. 

"  Granting  your  contention  " — so  it  may  be  said — "  that  we 
should  sweep  away  this  rubbish  and  place  education  of  the 
very  young  on  a  higher  plane,  who  will  consent  to  stoop  to  this 
trying  task?"  "Well,"  I  reply,  "Aristotle,  Cheiron,  Eli,  are 
examples  to  my  hand.  I  only  ask  for  the  same  kind  of  efifort 
that  people  are  willing  to  bestow  upon  training  a  parrot  to 
talk."  What  of  the  pious  folk  who  will  make  long  and  dan- 
gerous pilgrimages  and  perform  exacting  penances  to  please 
the  Deity  ?  And  yet  can  any  duty  be  more  agreeable  to  God 
than  the  right  up-bringing  of  the  young  ?  No  gloom,  no  self- 
mortification,  no  exhausting  effort  is  demanded  in  this  service  : 
diligence,  patience,  a  cheerful  demeanour,  will  accomplish  all. 
Nay,  the  very  shadow  of  harsh,  exacting  toil  and  compulsion 
should  be  banished  from  the  field. 


^32.     Methods  of  Early  Instruction  again  touched 
UPON.     511  d — 512  e. 

Ability  to  speak  is  easily  learned  by  use.  Next  come  the 
arts  of  reading  and  writing,  where  the  skill  of  the  teacher  can 
do  much  to  lighten  the  monotony  of  learning.  Much  time  is 
commonly  wasted  in  teaching  the  child  to  know  his  letters  and 
to  pronounce  words,  which  could  be  spent  on  more  important 
matters  to  far  greater  profit.  Reading,  indeed,  should  be 
attacked  on  methods  practised  in  Roman  schools.  Letters 
were  made  in  biscuit  form  and  when  learnt  were  allowed  to  be 
eaten.  Ivory  letters  were  used,  by  means  of  which  words  were 
composed  by  the  scholar.  And  other  devices  could  be  em- 
ployed. In  England  I  heard  of  a  father  who  taught  his  boy  to 
aim  with  bow  and  arrow  at  Greek  or  Roman  letters  painted  on 
a  target ;  a  hit  meant  a  cherry  for  the  archer.     This  could  be 


2 1 6     De  Pueris  Instituendis,   5 1 1  f — 5 1 3  a 

carried  out  as  a  competition  in  a  class  of  boys :  for  as  it  was, 
the  boy  learnt  all  his  letters,  their  names  and  sounds,  in  a  few 
days  instead  of  as  many  months. 

I  would  not,  however,  encourage  learning  by  games  of  chess 
or  dice ;  nor  any  devices  whose  complexity  is  such  that  the 
"  aid  "  costs  more  to  learn  than  the  subject  itself.  There  are 
machines  so  intricate  that  they  hinder  work  rather  than  shorten 
it.  Amongst  the  devices  I  have  in  mind  is  the  whole  class 
of  mnemonic  puzzles,  put  forth  merely  for  their  ingenuity,  or 
as  a  means  of  making  money.  Believe  me,  there  is  only  one 
sound  mnemonic  art,  and  it  has  three  rules :  understand, 
arrange,  repeat. 

A  clever  Teacher  will  utilise  the  motive  of  emulation 
amongst  children ;  for  this  will  often  be  found  effective  with 
boys  who  will  not  respond  to  warnings,  to  encouragement,  or  to 
the  offer  of  rewards.  Now  the  award  of  the  prize  must  by  no 
means  preclude  the  losers  from  the  chances  of  proving  them- 
selves winners  later  on :  and  there  may  be  circumstances  under 
which  the  master  will  be  wise  in  granting  the  first  place  to  one 
who  is  not  ahead  in  actual  attainment.  The  due  alternation  of 
praise  and  blame  will  often  provoke  keenness.  Should  you 
reply  that  a  master  may  be  unwilling  to  take  these  pains  to 
adapt  his  teaching  to  the  youthful  mind,  I  rejoin  that,  in  such 
case,  he  is  in  my  judgment  unfit  for  his  work. 

I  allow  that  the  first  steps  in  Latin  Grammar  are  not  in 
themselves  attractive  to  boys.  But  for  this  I  blame,  not  a  little, 
the  lack  of  judgment  in  the  master.  He  should  confine  his 
teaching  to  the  things  that  matter.  But  as  a  rule  the  young 
beginner  is  worried,  let  us  say,  about  the  names  of  the  letters, 
before  he  knows  one  of  them  by  sight,  or  about  the  case  of 
"  Musae,"  or  the  tense  of  "  legeris,"  before  he  has  learnt  his 
accidence.  And  what  beatings  are  apt  to  follow  failure ! 
Again,  a  shallow  mind  will,  in  order  to  parade  its  thin  layer  of 
knowledge  before  the  class,  import  wholly  unnecessary  diffi- 
culty into  a  lesson ;  this  happens  especially  in  teaching  Logic. 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,   511  f — 5 13  a     217 

They  are  ways  by  which  the  rudiments  are  made  harder  than 
they  need  be.  No  doubt  I  shall  be  told,  "/had  to  learn 
Latin  in  this  manner  when  I  was  a  boy;  what  was  good  enough 
for  me  must  do  for  him." 


§  33.     Difficulties  should  be  attacked  Patiently. 
512  E— 513  A. 

My  principles  of  method  then  are  briefly  these.  First,  do 
not  hurry,  for  learning  comes  easily  when  the  proper  stage  is 
reached.  Second,  avoid  a  difficulty  which  can  be  safely 
ignored  or  at  least  postponed.  Third,  when  the  difficulty 
musi  be  handled,  make  the  boy's  approach  to  it  as  gradual 
and  as  interesting  as  you  can.  Lucretius  tells  us  that  doctors 
used  to  sweeten  the  rim  of  the  medicine  glass  with  honey.  We 
know  that  imagination  often  magnifies  a  difficulty  in  life.  So 
in  teaching,  lead  the  beginner  to  face  his  unfamiliar  matter 
with  self-confidence,  to  attack  it  slowly  but  with  persistence. 
We  must  not  under-rate  the  capacity  of  youth  to  respond  to 
suitable  demands  upon  the  intelligence.  Youth  indeed  lacks 
that  sheer  force  which  marks  the  bull,  but  on  the  other  hand 
Nature  has  given  it  something  of  the  tenacity  and  industry  of 
the  ant.  The  child,  like  every  other  creature,  excels  in  the 
precise  activity  which  belongs  to  it.  How  else  could  he  race 
about  for  hours  and  not  be  tired?  But  such  exercise  is  in- 
stinctive, it  is  play  to  him,  there  is  no  sense  of  toil  about  it,  no 
compulsion.  Follow  Nature,  therefore,  in  this,  and  so  far  as  is 
possible  take  from  the  work  of  the  school  all  that  implies  toil- 
someness,  and  strive  to  give  to  learning  the  quality  of  freedom 
and  of  enjoyment.  Systematic  games  must  be  encouraged  as 
a  needful  relaxation  when  boys  reach  the  higher  stages  of  their 
subject,  and  can  no  longer  postpone  close  application  and  hard 
work.  Such  subjects  are  Greek  composition,  Latin  composition 
from  the  Greek,  and  cosmography.     But  I  would  say  that  no 


2 1 8     De  Pueris  Instituendis,   5 1 3  A — 5 1 4  a 

aid  to  progress  is  more  effectual  than  are  the  boy's  reverent 
affection  for  his  master,  his  love  of  learning,  and  his  ambition 
to  rank  with  the  best. 


§  34.     The    argument   that   the   Educational    Result 

ATTAINABLE     DURING     THESE     EaRLY    YeaRS     DOES     NOT 

JUSTIFY  THE  Trouble  or  Expense  involved.    513  a — 
514  A. 

The  contention  that  the  time  and  the  outlay  involved  in 
this  early  education  are  wasted  is  unworthy  of  anyone  who 
realises  what  true  fatherhood  implies.  Grant,  with  Quintilian, 
that  the  boy  may  acquire  in  one  year  after  he  has  passed 
his  fifth  birthday  as  much  as  he  can  during  the  whole  of  the 
previous  years,  is  that  a  reason  for  sacrificing  what  you  admit 
to  be  equivalent  to  the  harvest  of  a  twelvemonth  ?  Nor  is  the 
alternative  merely  that  the  boy  may  learn  nothing  ;  for  he  will 
undoubtedly  be  learning  that  which  he  must  later  unlearn. 
The  training  which  I  propose  will  serve  to  interest  and  occupy 
the  growing  child  from  the  time  when  he  can  understand  and 
be  understood.  The  youthful  mind  is  ever  acquiring  some- 
thing— good  or  evil.  The  progress  made,  slight  as  it  may  be, 
is  a  saving  of  labour  at  a  later  stage,  when  the  entire  time  and 
energy  of  the  pupil  are  set  free,  as  Quintilian  says,  for  work  of 
greater  difficulty.  Need  I  repeat  what  has  been  said  concern- 
ing the  aptitude  of  early  childhood  to  some  studies  ?  I  cannot, 
indeed,  allow  that  it  is  a  trivial  gain  that  a  child  should  win 
acquaintance  with  two  languages,  and  learn  to  read  and  write. 
A  merchant  is  far  from  despising  the  day  of  small  things ;  he 
knows  that  "little"  is  the  necessary  beginning  of  "much." 

Can  we,  in  fact,  afford  to  throw  away  four  years  of  our 
children's  lives,  when  we  know  that  the  two  hardest  things  to 
overtake  in  this  world  are  time  lost  and  learning  neglected? 
We  can  never  be  said  to  begin  too  soon  a  task  which  we  can 
never  live  to  finish  :  for  a  man  may  cease  to  learn  only  when 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,   5 1 3  a — 5 1 4  a     219 

he  ceases  to  live.  In  all  other  departments  of  life  we  may 
succeed  in  recovering  what  we  have  lost  by  neglect.  Time, 
however,  when  once  it  has  flown  by — and  it  flies  very  quickly — 
obeys  no  summons  to  return.  There  is  no  such  miracle  as 
a  fountain  of  perpetual  youth :  no  physic  which  can  make  old 
men  young  again.  Of  time,  then,  let  us  always  be  sparing  ;  of 
youthful  years  most  of  all,  for  this  is  the  best  part  of  man's  life, 
the  most  profitable,  if  it  be  rightly  guarded.  No  farmer  will 
see  his  land  lying  fallow,  not  even  a  little  field,  but  he  will  sow 
it  with  young  grasses,  or  lay  it  down  to  pasture,  or  use  it  as  a 
garden.  And  shall  we  suffer  the  best  part  of  our  life  to  pass 
without  any  fruit  of  wisdom  ?  Land,  as  we  know,  when  newly 
ploughed  up  must  be  sown  with  some  crop,  lest  it  bear  a  harvest 
of  weed.  So  the  tender  mind,  unless  it  be  forthwith  sown  with 
true  instruction,  will  harbour  evil  seeds.  The  child  grows  up 
either  to  goodness  or  to  unworthiness :  if  the  latter,  there  is  the 
hard  task  of  up-rooting.  The  child  has  gained  no  small  thing 
who  has  escaped  evil.  See,  then,  how  in  various  ways  it  profits 
that  he  be  early  brought  up  in  learning. 


§  35.     Examples  of  the  Proficiency  of  Youth  and  its 
Importance  for  Later  Life.     514  a — e. 

But  is  there  need  to  labour  this  ?  How  steeped  in  learning 
from  their  very  infancy  were  men  of  old  time  !  How  helpless 
are  their  successors  to-day !  Ovid  and  Lucan  composed  not 
a  little  of  their  poetry  in  their  youth  :  who  can  now  boast  the 
same  ?  Lucan  when  but  six  months  old  was  brought  to  Rome 
and  was  soon  after  placed  under  the  two  best  teachers  of 
Grammar  in  the  city.  For  companions  he  had  Bassus  and 
Persius :  the  former  a  historian,  the  latter  the  famous  satirist. 
No  doubt  we  have  here  the  secret  of  that  notable  learning  and 
eloquence,  whereby  Lucan  is  distinguished  as  the  typical  ora- 
torical poet  of  ancient  Rome.     In  modern  days  how  rare  are 


2  20     De  Pueris  Instituendis,   514B — 5 16  a 

examples  of  similar  distinction  !  Poliziano  has  celebrated  the 
erudition  of  Cassandra  :  and  in  a  letter  of  elegant  Latinity  has 
recorded  the  genius  of  the  boy  Orsini,  who  at  the  age  of  eleven 
could  dictate  two  Latin  letters  at  once,  letters  which  in  com- 
position and  scholarly  diction  struck  scholars  with  admira- 
tion. This  experiment  he  on  one  occasion  repeated  five  times, 
a  feat  which  some  observers  ascribed  to  witchcraft.  Well, 
I  will  allow  this  explanation,  if  by  it  you  mean  the  "enchant- 
ment "  that  is  worked  by  setting  the  boy  from  earliest  childhood 
to  work  under  the  example  and  stimulus  of  a  learned,  sincere, 
and  conscientious  Master. 

By  such  "  enchantments "  Alexander  of  Macedon  shewed 
himself  master  alike  of  eloquence  and  of  philosophy  ;  in  which 
indeed  he  might  have  attained  great  distinction  had  he  not 
been  lured  away  by  ambition  and  by  passionate  ardour  for  war. 
By  the  same  arts  Julius  Caesar  became  proficient  in  oratory 
and  in  the  mathematical  disciplines.  Cicero,  Vergil,  and 
Horace,  not  a  few  of  the  earlier  Emperors,  became  men  of 
approved  learning  and  of  classic  style,  by  reason  of  the  diligent 
use  they  were  led  to  make  of  their  early  years.  For  they  were 
taught  by  their  parents  from  the  very  nursery  the  art  of  refined 
speech,  and  were  afterwards  passed  on  to  masters  by  whom 
they  were  grounded  in  the  liberal  arts,  in  Poetry,  Rhetoric, 
History,  Antiquity;  in  Arithmetic;  in  Geography,  and  in 
Philosophy,  both  moral  and  political. 

§  36.     The  Sad  Condition  of  Teaching  and  of  Schools 
IN  Modern  Days.     514  e — 516  a. 

What  a  contrast  when  we  look  around  to-day !  We  see 
boys  kept  at  home  in  idleness  and  self-indulgence  until  they  are 
fourteen  or  fifteen  years  of  age.  They  are  then  sent  to  some 
school  or  other.  There,  if  they  are  lucky,  they  gain  some 
touch  of  Grammar,  the  simpler  inflections,  the  agreement  of 
noun   and   adjective.     They  are   then    supposed  to   "know" 


De  Pueris  Instituendis,   514  b — 5 1 6  a     221 


Latin,  and  are  put  on  to  some  terrible  text  in  Logic,  which 
will  spoil  what  little  good  Latin  accidence  or  syntax  they  have 
acquired.  My  own  childhood  was  tortured  by  logical  subtleties 
which  had  no  reference  to  anything  that  was  true  in  fact  or 
sound  in  expression.  Not  a  few  Masters  postponed  Grammar 
to  Logic  and  Metaphysic,  but  found  that  they  had  to  revert  to 
the  rudiments  of  Latin  when  their  pupils  were  fast  growing  up. 
Great  heavens,  what  a  time  was  that  when  with  vast  pretension 
the  verses  of  John  Garland,  eked  out  with  amazing  com- 
mentary, were  dictated  to  the  class,  learnt  by  heart,  and  said 
as  repetition !  When  Florista  and  the  Floretus  were  set  as 
lessons !  Alexander  de  Villa  Dei,  compared  with  such  a  crowd, 
is  worthy  of  positive  commendation.  Again,  how  much  time 
was  spent  in  sophistries  and  vain  mazes  of  logic  !  Further,  as 
to  the  manner  of  teaching,  what  confused  methods,  what 
needless  toil,  characterised  instruction !  How  common  it  was 
for  a  master,  for  mere  display,  to  cram  his  lesson  with  irrele- 
vant matter,  wise  or  foolish,  but  all  equally  out  of  place!  All 
this  made  for  needless  difficulty;  for  there  is  no  virtue  in 
difficulty,  as  such,  in  instruction.  And  even  to-day  school- 
masters are  not  seldom  men  of  no  learning  at  all,  or,  what  is 
worse,  of  no  character.  They  have  taken  to  teaching  as  a 
means  to  a  life  of  ease  and  money-making.  If  this  has  been, 
and  is,  the  true  state  of  education  in  our  schools,  no  wonder 
that  learning  perishes  amongst  us.  The  critical  years  of  a 
boy's  life  are  allowed  to  run  to  waste ;  he  acquires  the  habit, 
which  cannot  be  cured,  of  giving  but  a  fraction  of  his  time  and 
thought  to  serious  pursuits,  the  rest  he  squanders  on  vulgar 
pleasures.  The  parent  looks  on  and  does  nothing.  And  yet 
we  hear  talk  of  the  "  tender  youth,"  "  undeveloped  capacity," 
"  meagre  results," — all  so  many  excuses  for  wicked  neglect  of 
the  child  in  his  early  years ! 


222  De  Pueris  Instituendis,   516 


§  37.     Conclusion.     516  a. 

Now  I  have  done.  I  make  my  appeal  to  that  practical 
wisdom  which  you  have  always  exhibited  in  affairs.  Consider 
how  dear  a  possession  is  your  son;  how  many-sided  is  learning; 
how  exacting  its  pursuit,  and  how  honourable  !  Think  how 
instinctive  is  the  child's  wish  to  learn,  how  plastic  his  mind, 
how  responsive  to  judicious  training,  if  only  he  be  entrusted  to 
instructors  at  once  sympathetic  and  skilled  to  ease  the  first 
steps  in  knowledge.  Let  me  recall  to  you  the  durability  of 
early  impressions,  made  upon  the  unformed  mind,  as  compared 
with  those  acquired  in  later  life.  You  know  also  how  hard  it 
is  to  overtake  time  lost ;  how  wise,  in  all  things,  to  begin  our 
tasks  in  season ;  how  great  is  the  power  of  persistence  in 
accumulating  what  we  prize  ;  how  fleeting  a  thing  is  the  life 
of  man,  how  busy  is  youth,  how  inapt  for  learning  is  age.  In 
face,  then,  of  all  these  serious  facts  you  will  not  suffer,  I  do  not 
say  seven  years,  but  three  days  even,  of  your  son's  life  to  pass, 
before  you  take  into  earnest  consideration  his  nurture  and 
future  education. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 


I.     FROM   THE   DE   CONSCRIBENDIS  EPISTOLIS. 

The  following  passage  forms  one  of  the  model  letters 
comprised  in  the  treatise  on  Epistolary  Composition.  It  is 
inserted  here  in  the  original  as  a  good  specimen  of  Erasmian 
Latin  of  the  later  period  (1522). 

The  advice  given  has  primary  reference  to  private  study, 
but  it  is  obviously  equally  applicable  to  class  work.  It  should 
be  read  in  conjunction  with  the  section  above  on  The  Method 
of  reading  an  Author,  and  with  the  De  Ratione  Studii. 


Qui  sit  modus  repetendae  lectionis,  that  is,  Hov^^  to 

MASTER   A    PASSAGE    FROM    A   CLASSICAL   AUTHOR.       Op.  i.  447. 

§  I.       It  IS  A  MISTAKE  TO  BEGIN  BY  LEARNING  THE   PASSAGE   BY 

HEART. 

Quibusdam  prima  ac  unica  fere  cura  est  statim  ad  verbum 
ediscere;  quod  equidem  non  probo,  est  enim  tum  magni 
laboris,  tum  fructus  prope  nullius.  Quorsum  enim  attinet, 
psittaci  more,  verba  non  intellecta  reddere?  Commodiorem 
igitur  viam  accipe. 


224    ■  Modus  Repetendae  Lectionis 


§  2,      A    FIRST    READING    SHOULD    AIM    MERELY    AT    SECURING 
THE   GENERAL   SENSE   OF    THE    PASSAGE. 

Lectionem  quidem  auditam  continue  relege,  ita  ut  uni- 
versam  sententiam  paulo  altius  animo  infigas. 

§  3.       A    SECOND    READING   IS    CONCERNED   WITH   GRAMMATICAL 
STRUCTURE   AND   WORD-FORMS. 

Deinde  a  calce  rursus  ad  caput  redibis,  et  singula  verba 
excutere  incipies,  ea  duntaxat  inquirens  quae  ad  grammaticam 
curam  attinent :  videlicet,  si  quod  verbum  obscurum,  aut 
ancipitis  derivationis,  si  heteroclitae  conjugationis ;  quod  su- 
pinum,  quod  praeteritum  faciat :  quos  habeat  maiores,  quos 
nepotes,  quam  constructionem ;  quid  significet ;  et  huiusmodi 
nonnuUa. 

§  4.       A    THIRD    READING    IS     DEVOTED    TO    ANALYSIS    OF   THE 
RHETORICAL   ARTIFICE   DISPLAYED. 

Hoc  ubi  egeris,  rursum  de  integro  percurrito,  ea  iam 
potissimum  inquirens  quae  ad  artificium  rhetoricum  spectant. 
Si  quid  venustius,  si  quid  elegantius,  si  quid  concinnius 
dictum  videbitur,  annotabis  indice  aut  asterisco  apposite. 
Verborum  compositionem  inspicies,  orationis  decora  scrutabere. 
Auctoris  consilium  indagabis,  qua  quidque  ratione  dixerit. 
Ubi  quid  te  delectaverit  vehementius  cave  praeter  casam, 
quod  aiunt,  fugias.  Fige  pedem,  ac  abs  te  ipso  rationem 
exige  quare  tantopere  sis  ea  oratione  delectatus,  cur  non 
ex  ceteris  quoque  parem  ceperis  voluptatem.  Invenies  te 
acumine  aut  exornatione  aliqua  oratoria,  aut  compositionis 
harmonia,  aut  (ne  omnia  persequar)  simili  quapiam  causa, 
commotum  fuisse.  Quod  si  aliquod  adagium,  si  qua  sententia, 
si  quod  proverbium  vetus,  si  qua  historia,  si  qua  fabula,  si 
qua  similitudo  non  inepta,  si  quid  breviter,  acute,  aut  alioqui 
ingeniose  dictum  esse  videbitur,  id  tanquam  thesaurum  quen- 
dam  animo  diligenter  reponendum  ducito  ad  usum  et  ad 
imitationem. 


Modus  Repetendae  Lectionis  225 

§  5.  A  FOURTH  READING  NOTES  THE  USES  WHICH  THE 
PASSAGE  ADMITS  OF  FOR  PRACTICAL,  AND  ESPECIALLY 
MORAL,    APPLICATION. 

His  diligenter  curatis  ne  pigeat  quarto  iterare.  Nam  hoc 
habent  eruditorum  virorum,  summo  ingenio,  summis  vigiliis 
elucubrata  scripta,  ut  millies  relecta  magis  magisque  placeant, 
semperque  admiratori  suo  novum  miraculum  ostendant — id 
quod  tibi  in  tabula  tua,  saepenumero  nee  sine  causa  laudata, 
evenire  solet — quod  antea  non  animadvertisses.  Idem  tibi 
multo  amplius  in  bonis  auctoribus  eveniet.  Releges  igitur 
quarto,  ac  quae  ad  philosophiam,  maxime  vero  ethicen,  referri 
posse  videantur,  circumspicies,  si  quod  exemplum,  quod 
moribus  accommodari  possit.  Quid  autem  est,  ex  quo  non 
vel  exemplum  vivendi,  vel  imago  quaedam  vel  occasio  sumi 
queat  ?  Nam  in  aliorum  pulchre  ac  turpiter  factis,  quid  deceat 
quid  non  iuxta  videmus. 

§  6.     The  passage   thus    thoroughly   understood    will 

NEED   little   EFFORT  TO   COMMIT  IT  TO  MEMORY,  SHOULD 
THAT  BE  DESIRED. 

Haec  si  facies  iam  vel  edidiceris,  quanquam  aliud  egisti. 
Tum  demum,  si  libet,  ad  ediscendi  laborem  accedito,  qui  turn 
aut  nuUus  erit  aut  certe  perquam  exiguus. 

§  7.     Discussion    is    useful   as   aid  to   establishing  or 
revising  your  interpretation  and  your  criticisms. 

Quid  deinde?  Restat  ut,  cum  studiosis  congrediaris,  tuas 
annotationes  in  medium  proferas,  vicissimque  illorum  audias, 
alia  laudabis,  alia  reprehendes;  tua  partim  defendes,  partim 
castigari  permittes.  Postremo,  quod  in  aliis  laudasti  tuis  in 
scriptis  imitari  conaberis.  Secreta  studia  a  doctis  laudantur, 
at  ita  ut  postea  e  latebris  in  arenam  prodeamus  viriumque 

w.  15 


226        From  the  Convivium  Religiosum 

nostranim  periculum  faciamus.  Id  quod  sapientissime  a 
Socrate  est  dictum.  Experiamur  utrum  partus  ingeniorum 
vitales  sint,  nimirum  obstetricum  industriam  imitati.  Quare 
alternatim  utrisque  utetur,  qui  non  vulgariter  volet  evadere 
doctus.     Vale. 

II.     FROM   THE   CONVIVIUM  RELIGIOSUM. 

The  following  passage  from  the  Colloquy  entitled  Con- 
vivium Religiosum  is  a  typical  illustration  of  the  Erasmian 
method  of  handling  Natural  History  and  pictorial  illustrations 
of  Nature,  History  and  Religion  for  purposes  of  teaching. 
The  Colloquies,  the  recognised  school  Reading-book  of  the 
1 6th  century,  provided  an  introduction  to  eruditio  or  general 
knowledge  as  well  as  practice  in  Latin.  But  not  less  obvious 
than  either  was  its  function  of  inculcating  moral  lessons. 

Convivium  Religiosum,  that  is,  A  serious  entertainment. 
Op.  i.  662. 

The  host  Eusebius  is  entertaining  friends  from  the  Town 
at  his  villa,  and  before  breakfast  is  served  shows  them  the 
gardens. 

Eusebius:  This  part  of  the  grounds  was  planned  as  a 
pleasure  garden,  but  for  honest  pleasure;  for  the  worthy 
gratification  of  the  senses,  yet  not  less  for  the  recreation  of 
the  mind.  None  but  sweet-smelling  flowers  and  herbs  are 
planted  here,  and  of  these  only  the  finest  kinds.  Each  variety 
has  a  bed  to  itself 

A  guest:  It  is  plain  that  your  plants  are  not  dumb  creatures. 

Eusebius:  That  is  true.  My  villa  I  built  for  converse, 
and  here  everything  has  its  fit  utterance,  as  you  will  perceive. 
The  various  plants,  for  instance,  are  marshalled  in  troops, 
each  with  its  ensign,  and  its  motto.  The  marjoram,  I  see, 
gives  warning  by  inscription :  Abstine,  sus,  non  tibi  spiro : 
Keep   off,  sow,   my  perfume  is  not  for  you.      For   however 


From  the  Convivium  Religiosum        227 

fragrant,  marjoram  repels  a  sow.  And  in  the  same  way  each 
variety  has  its  appropriate  title,  indicating  its  peculiar  virtue. 

A  guest:  How  charming  is  this  fountain,  and  the  marble- 
lined  channel  which  dividing  its  course  marks  out  the  different 
sections  of  the  garden,  reflecting  the  flowers  as  in  a  mirror! 
I  see  that  your  artificial  fences  are  green,  like  the  plants. 

Eusebius :  Yes,  green  is  my  own  choice,  and  in  his  garden 
a  man  should  follow  his  fancy.  For  here  I  study,  or  walk, 
or  converse,  or  sometimes  even  take  my  meals,  as  I  feel 
disposed. 

A  guest :  Having  so  pleasant,  so  well-furnished  a  garden, 
wherein  reality  and  nature  have  done  so  much  for  your  delight, 
what  need  have  you  for  that  other  pleasaunce  which  I  see 
yonder  painted  on  the  wall? 

Eusebius :  First,  because  no  one  garden  can  contain  the 
plants  of  all  climates ;  next,  I  like  to  see  the  art  of  the  painter 
pitted  against  the  direct  product  of  the  Creator,  though  both 
art  and  nature  are  the  gifts  of  the  same  divine  goodness,  and 
intended  for  man's  use.  Lastly,  a  garden  is  not  always  green  : 
flowers  fade  with  the  seasons  :  this  garden  remains  fresh  when 
the  other  is  bare.... In  the  path  beneath  our  feet,  which  I  have 
had  paved  with  wood,  you  can  see  the  beauty  of  painted  flowers 
standing  forth  from  the  green  background.  Turn  to  the  wall 
which  shelters  us.  Here  we  have  unfamiliar  trees,  each  tree 
there  drawn  to  the  life  is  a  distinct  species ;  the  same  is  the 
case  with  the  birds  shown  in  the  branches,  most  of  them  we 
could  not  see  in  our  own  northern  gardens :  and  some  of  them 
are  of  extraordinary  types.  Below  the  trees  are  animals  that 
haunt  the  ground. 

A  guest :  Wonderful  is  the  variety  ;  and  each  one  is  in 
movement,  doing,  or  at  least  saying,  something.  Here  is  an 
Owl,  what  says  she  ? 

Eusebius :  She  speaks  Greek  :  ^w<f>p6v€i,  oi  iraaiv  Iimj/jLu 
That  is,  "Learn  wisdom  from  me:  I  do  not  fly  to  everyone:" 
It  is  a  lesson  against  recklessness.    There  is  an  eagle  devouring 

15—2 


228        From  the  Convivium  Religiosum 

a  hare,  and  a  beetle  stands  by  interceding,  but  in  vain.  By 
the  beetle  stands  a  wren,  the  eagle's  inveterate  foe.  The 
swallow  has  a  leaf  of  celandine  in  her  beak,  which  she  is 
taking  to  her  nest  to  give  sight  to  her  blind  unfledged  young. 
Near  is  the  chameleon  always  gaping,  because  always  hungry. 
The  wild  fig  close  by  is  his  aversion. 

A  guest:  How  does  he  change  his  colour  ? 

Eusebius :  Only  when  he  moves  from  one  place  to  another. 
See  the  camel  dancing  as  the  monkey  pipes  to  him.  But 
we  should  need  three  days  to  go  through  each  object  depicted 
here.  In  that  compartment  are  all  kinds  of  remarkable  plants, 
amongst  them  the  poisonous  trees,  which  we  may  here  ap- 
proach and  examine  without  danger  to  ourselves. 

A  guest :  See,  here  is  a  scorpion,  an  animal  we  rarely  see 
in  this  country,  but  common  enough  in  Italy,  and  apt  to  be 
malignant.  The  colour  in  the  picture,  however,  seems  hardly 
true  to  nature.     Those  in  Italy  are  much  darker. 

Eusebius :  But  do  you  not  recognise  the  plant  upon  which 
it  has  hapt  ?  It  is  the  wolfsbane :  so  deadly  a  poison  that  at 
the  first  touch  of  it  the  scorpion  is  stupefied  and  suddenly 
grows  pale.  But  it  is  his  habit  when  oppressed  by  one  poison 
to  seek  an  antidote  in  another.  Hard  by  the  scorpion  are 
hellebore  plants,  if  the  scorpion  can  but  struggle  clear  of  the 
wolfsbane  and  reach  the  white  hellebore,  he  will  recover,  for 
the  one  will  counteract  the  other. 

A  guest :  And  do  your  scorpions  speak  ? 

Eusebius:  Yes,  and  they  speak  Greek:  Evpe  Oeoq  tov  aXi- 
rpov.  God  hath  found  out  the  guilty.  Here  also  you  may 
see  serpents  of  all  kinds,  such  as  the  basilisk,  which  is  not 
ohly  formidable  for  his  poisonous  bite,  for  the  mere  glance 
of  his  eye  is  mortal.  His  motto  is,  Oderint  dum  metuant :  Let 
them  hate,  if  only  they  fear  me. 

A  guest:  He  speaks  like  a  king. 

Eusebius:  Like  a  Tyrant  rather:  but  not  a  true  King. 
Here  is  a  lizard  fighting  an  adder,  and  another  variety  of  snake 


From  the  Convivium   Religiosum         229 

just  on  the  spring.  Notice  the  polity  of  the  ants,  whom  we 
are  bidden  to  imitate  by  Solomon  and  Horace.  The  Indian 
ants  are  busy  carrying  off  gold  to  hoard  it  up.  But  turn  to 
look  beyond,  where  is  a  third  wall  facing  us.  There  are  lakes, 
rivers,  and  seas,  with  the  appropriate  fishes  shown  swimming 
in  the  water.  The  Nile  for  instance,  in  which  is  a  dolphin, 
that  natural  friend  of  man,  fighting  with  the  deadly  enemy  of 
man,  the  crocodile.  Upon  the  banks  are  such  creatures  as 
crabs,  beavers  and  seals.  Here  is  a  polypus,  nipped  by  an 
oyster.  hXpC^v  alpovfxaL,  he  cries,  "the  biter  bit."  Close  by 
there  is  a  second  polypus  floating  on  the  surface;  and  a 
torpedo-fish  lying  on  the  sands  and  hardly  discernible.  They 
are  dangerous  enough,  but  not  to  us.  I  will  now  show  you 
the  kitchen-garden,  and  an  inner  garden  planted  with  healing 
herbs.  Upon  the  right  hand  there  is  an  orchard,  where  you 
shall  see  a  great  variety  of  foreign  trees  which  have  been 
acclimatised  by  care.  At  the  end  of  the  upper  walk  is  the 
aviary.  Now  amongst  its  denizens  you  will  see  birds  of  many 
forms,  of  various  note,  and  of  divers  humours.  Some  are 
bound  to  each  other  by  mutual  affection,  and  are  again  parted 
from  others  by  deep  aversion.  Then  they  are  so  tame  and 
friendly  that  when  I  am  at  supper  they  will  fly  in  at  the 
window  and  take  food  from  my  hands.  At  times  they  will 
sit  listening  as  I  talk  to  a  friend,  or  perch  upon  my  shoulders 
without  any  fear,  knowing  that  no  one  will  harm  them.  At 
the  end  of  the  orchard  I  have  my  bees,  a  sight  worth  seeing. 

Observe  this  summer  apartment,  which  looks  out  upon 

the  gardens  in  three  directions,  and  in  each  of  them  a  fore- 
ground of  delicate  green  meets  the  eye.  When  I  dine  here 
I  seem  to  be  dining  in  the  garden  itself:  nay,  the  very  walls 
are  painted  in  green,  with  flowers  intermixed.  There  are 
subject  pictures  also :  our  Saviour  celebrating  his  Last  Supper : 
Herod  keeping  his  birthday  :  Dives  in  the  midst  of  his  luxury  : 
Lazarus  driven  from  his  doors. 
A  guest:  Here  are  other  stories. 


230        From  the  Convivium   Religiosum 

Eusebius:  This  is  Cleopatra,  vying  with  Antony  in  a  race 
of  extravagance ;  she  has  swallowed  the  draught  containing 
the  pearl.  Here  is  the  battle  of  the  Centaurs;  there  Alexander 
the  Great  kills  Clytus  with  the  lance.  These  examples 
teach  us  sobriety  at  table,  and  warn  against  gluttony  and 
excess.  We  will  now  pass  into  my  Library,  my  chiefest 
treasure.  This  hanging  Globe  is  a  presentation  of  the  whole 
world.  Here  upon  the  wall  are  the  several  regions  of  it 
described  more  at  large.  Upon  those  other  walls  you  have 
pictures  of  the  most  eminent  authors.  First  among  them  is 
Christ  sitting  upon  the  Mount,  stretching  forth  his  hand.  The 
Father  speaks.  Hear  ye  Him :  the  Holy  Spirit  overshadows 
Him  with  outstretched  wing.... The  Library  has  a  little  gallery 
looking  upon  the  garden,  and  an  oratory  adjoining  it.  Let 
us  pass  now  to  the  covered  gallery  that  you  have  not  yet  seen. 
Here  upon  the  left  hand  is  depicted  the  whole  life  of  Jesus 
down  to  the  descent  of  the  Spirit  upon  the  Apostles.  And 
there  are  notes  upon  the  places,  so  that  the  spectator  may 
see  by  what  lake  or  upon  what  mountain  such  or  such  an 
event  occurred.  There  are  also  titles  to  every  story.  Over 
against  this  you  have  figured  the  types  and  prophecies  of  the 
Old  Testament.  Upon  the  upper  border  are  portraits  of  the 
Popes  and  of  the  Caesars,  there  placed  as  aids  to  the  due 
remembering  of  history.  At  each  corner  is  a  belvedere,  where 
I  can  sit  down,  and  view  my  gardens  and  my  birds;  or  in 
summer  can  take  my  breakfast 


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Melanchthon  (P.).     De  Corrigendis  Studiis  (15 18)  in  Corpus  Reforma- 

tortim,  xi.  p.  15.     8°.  Halle  1834 — 1860. 
MiRANDULA  (Giovanni  Pico  della).     De  Imitatione.     8°.  Venet.  1530. 
Mueller  (Johannes).     Vor-  imd friihreformatorische  Schulordnungen  ttnd 

Schulvertrdge  m  Deutscher  und  Niederldtulischer  Sprache.  8°.  Zschopau 

1885. 
Nausea  (Fridericus),   Bishop  of  Vienna.      De  Puero  Uteris  instituendo. 

Col.   1536. 
Nichols  (Francis  Morgan).     The  Epistles  of  Erasmus,  from  his  earliest 

letters  to  his  fifty-first  year .     Vol.  i.    8°.  London  1901. 
NoLHAC  (Pierre  de).     £rasme  en  Italic.     8".  Paris  1888. 
Pater  (W.).   Mariiis  the  Epicurean.  Seconded.   2  voll.  8  vo.  London  1885. 
Paulsen  (Friedrich).     Geschichte  des  Gelehrten  Unterrichts  auf  den  Detit- 

schen  Schulen  und  Universitdten  vom  Ausgang  des  Alittelalters  bis  ztir 

Gegenwart.     8°.  Leipzig  1885. 
PICCOLOMINI  (Aeneas  Sylvius).     Opera,     f".  Basil.  1551. 
POLITIANUS  (Angelas).     Omnia  Opera.     f°.  Venet.  1^8. 
QuiNTiLlANUS  (M.  Fabius).     Institutionis  oratoriae  Liber  Decimus.     Ed. 

W.  Peterson,  M.A.     8°.  Oxford  1891. 
Raleigh  (Walter).     The  Book  of  the  Courtier,  translated  by  Thomas  Hoby, 

with  Introduction  by  the  Editor.     8°.  London  1900. 
Raumer.     Geschichte  der  Pddagogik.     2  voll.    8°.  Berlin  1880. 
RiCHTF.R  (Dr  Arthur).     Erasmus- Studien.     8°.  Dresden  1891. 
Roesler  (A.).     Kardinal Johannes  Dominicis  Erziehungslehre.     8°.  Frei- 
burg 1894. 
RossiGNOL  (J. -P.).     De  r Education  et  de  t Instruction  des  Hommes  et  des 

Eemmcs  chez  les  Anciens.     8°.  Paris  1888. 
Sabbadini  (R.).     Franciscus  Floridus  Sabinus.     Article  in  the  Giornale 

Storico  della  Letteratura  Italiana,  vol.  viii.  p.  333.     8°.  Torino. 
Sabbadini  (R.).     La  Scuola  e  gli  Studi  di  Guarino  Guarini  Veronese.    8°. 

Catania  1896. 
Sabbadini    (R.).     Prolusione  al  corso  di  Letteratura   Italiana  nella  P. 

Universita  di  Catania.     Catania  1894. 
Sabbadini  (R.).     Storia  del  Ciceronianismo  e  di  altre  questioni  letterarie 

neir  eth  della  Rinascenza.     8°.  Torino  1885. 
Sadoleto  (J.).     De  Liberis  recte  instituetulis  mj.  Scuioleti... opera,  tom.  iii. 

p.  66.     4to.  Veronae  1738. 
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Century  B.C.  to  the  end  of  the  Middle  Ages.     8°.  Cambridge  1903. 

15—5 


234  List  of  Works  referred  to 

SCALIGER  (Julius  Cacsar).     Pro  M.  T.  Cicerone  contra  Desiderium  Eras- 
mum  Roter.     Oratio  I.     8°.  Tolosae  1620. 
The  same.     Oratio  II.    Tolosae  1 620. 
ScHMiD  (K.).     Encyklopddie  des  gesamten  Erziehungs-  tind  Unterrichts- 

wesens.     11  vols.    8°.  Gotha  1858  etc. 
Seebohm  (Frederic).     The  Oxford  Reformers  of  1498;   Colet,  Erastnus, 

More.     3rd  ed.     8°.  London  1867. 
Spitzner  (Johannes).    Beitrag zur  Kritik  der  Unterrichts-  tend Erziehungs- 

lehre  des  Desiderius  Erasmus  auf  Grund  seiner  "  Declamatio  de  Fueris 

liberaliter  instituendis.^'     8°.  Leipzig  1893. 
Sturm  (Johannes).     De  Literarum  Ludis  recte  apadendis  Liber.      12°. 

Argent.   1543. 
Sylvius  (Aeneas).     See  Piccolomini. 
Thurot  (Charles).     Notices  et  Extraits  des  Manuscrits  de  la  Bibliothique 

Imperiale  etc.     Tome  xxii.     4°.  Paris  1868. 
ToGEL  (Dr  Hermann).     Die  pddagogischen  Anschauungen  des  Erasmus  in 

ihrer  psychologischen  Begriindung.     8°.  Dresden  1896. 
TOPSELL  (Edward).     The  Historie  of  Foure-Footed  Beastes.     i°.  London 

1607. 
Valla  (Laurentius).    Elegantiae  Linguae  Latinae.     4".  Venet.  (Jenson) 

1471. 
Veil  (H.).     Zum   Geddchtnis  Joh.  Sturms   in  Festschrift  zur  Feier  des 

^lo-jdhrigen  Bestehens  des  Protestantischen  Gymnasiums  zu  Strassburg 

(Erster  Theil).     8°.  Strassburg  1888. 
ViLLARl  (P.).     The  Life  and  Times  of  Niccolb  Machiavelli.    Translated  by 

Linda  Villari.     2  voll.    8°.  London  1892. 
ViVES  (J.  L.).     De  disciplinis  libri  XX.     J.  Gymnicus.     Coloniae  1532. 
ViVES  (J.  L.).     De  officio  mariti.     8°.  Brugis  1529. 

ViVES  (J.  L.).     De  institutione foeminae  Christianae.    4°.  Antverpiae  1524. 
VoiGT  (G.).      Die   Wiederbelebung  des   Classischen   Alterthums.      2  voll. 

8°.  Berlin  1893. 
Ward  (A.  W.).     The  Netherlands  (being  ch.  xiii.  in  the  Cambridge  Modern 

History,  vol.  i.).     8°.  Cambridge  1902. 
Watson  (Foster).     The  Curriculum  and  Text-books  of  English  Schools  in 

the  first  half  of  the  Seventeenth  Century.     4°.  London  1903. 
Woodward  (William  Harrison).     Vittorino  da  Feltre  and  other  Humanist 

Educators.     8°.  Cambridge  1897. 

Note. — A  useful  bibliography  of  German  humanism  will  be  found  in 
Paulsen's  Geschichte  des  Gelchrten  Unterrichts,  and  others  in  the 
Cambridge  Alodern  History,  voll.  i.  and  ii. 


XVI.    Cent,  versions  of  Erasmus        235 


(ii)     FIRST   EDITIONS   OF   ERASMUS    IN   ENGLISH, 
XVI.   CENTURY. 

The  following  List  of  first  editions  of  English  Versions  of  works  by 
Erasmus  is  certainly  incomplete,  but  it  is  less  so  than  any  hitherto  avail- 
able. Biblical  works  are  excepted.  I  shall  be  grateful  for  all  information 
which  may  aid  in  enlarging  or  correcting  the  particulars  here  given,   w.  H.  w. 

ADAGIA. 

Proverbes  or  adagies   with   newe  addicions  gathered  out  of  the 
Chiliades  of  Erasmus,   by  R.   Taverner.     Hereunto  be   also   added 
Mimi  Publiani.     8°.  [R.   Bankes:]  London  1539. 
APOLOGIA  PRO  DECLAMA TIONE  DE  LAUDE  MATRIMONII. 

A  modest  meane  to  marriage,  translated  into  englishe  by  N[icholas] 
L[eigh].     16°.  London  1568. 
A  POPHTHEGMA  TA . 

Apophthegmes,  that  is  to  saie,  prompte,  quicke,  wittie  and  sen- 
tencious  saiynges  of  certain  Emperours,  Kynges...into  englyshe  by 
N.   Udall.     8°.   R.  Grafton:  London  1542. 

A  translation  of  Books  III.  and  IV.  only. 

Dicta  Sapientium.  The  sayenges  of  the  wyse  men  of  Grece,  in 
Latin  with  the  Englysshe  followyng. . .interprete. . .by .. .Erasmus  Rote.. . . 
12°.  T.  Berthelet :  London  [c.  1550]. 

Berthelet  printed  1530 — 1555. 

Flores  aliquot  sententiarum  ex  variis  collecti  scriptoribus.  The 
flowers  of  sentencies  gathered  out  of  sundry  wrj'ters  by  Erasmus  in 
Latine,  and  englished  by  Richard  Taverner.  8'='.  R.  Bankes  :  London 
1540. 

The  colophon  reads  "  Printed  in  Fletestrete  very  diligently  under 
the  correction  of  the  selfe  R.  Taverner  by  R  :  Bankes...."  "The  work 
is  not  really  by  Erasmus,  though  partly  founded  on  his  Apophthegmata. 
The  author  was  Taverner."     E.  G.  D. 

Sage  and  Prudent  saiynges  of  the  seaven  Wyse  Men ;  Wyse  saiynges 
and  Prety  Tauntes  of  Publius.     R.  Grafton  :  London  1545. 

Certain   flours   of  most   notable   sentences  of  wise  men,  gathered 
together   by   Erasmus   of    Roterdam,   and    translated    into    English. 
[A  supplement  to  An  Introducion  to  w^sedome  made  by  Ludovicus 
Vives.]     8°.  John  Daye:    London  (?  1546). 
BELLUM.     (Ex  Adagiis.) 

Bellum,  trans,  into  englyshe.     8^.  Tho.  Berthelet:   London  1533-4. 


236        XVI.  Cent,  versions  of  Erasmus 

CATO  PRO  PUERIS. 

Preceptes  of  Cato,  with  annotations  of  D.  Erasmus  of  Roterodame, 
very  profytable  for  all  men.  Newly  imprynted  and  corrected  ;  Trans- 
lated out  of  Latyn  into  Englysshe  by  Robert  Burrant.  R.  Grafton: 
London  1545. 

COLLOQUIA. 

A  dialogue  or  communication  of  two  persons... pylgremage  of  pure 
devotion....     8°.  [John  Byddell :  London  c.  1538]. 
Byddell  printed  1533-44. 

A  mery  dialogue,  declaringe  the  propertyes  of  shrowde  shrewes  and 
honest  wyves.     8°.  Antony  Kytson  :  London  1557. 

A  mery  dialogue  declaryng  the  properties  of  shrowde  shrewes  and 
honest  wyves.     4°.  Abr.  Vele:  London  [c.  1557]. 

Apparently  the  same  impression  as  the  above.     Cf.  Hazlitt,  ill.  76. 
Vele  or  Veale  printed  1551-86. 

A  seraphical  dirige,  disclosing  the  7  secret  priviledges  graunted  to 
S.  Francis  and  all  his  progenie  for  ever.  8°.  John  Byddell :  London 
[c.  1538]. 

Epicureus,  translated  by  Philyppe  Gerard.  16°.  Rich.  Grafton: 
London  1545. 

[Erasmus  Rotordamus  contaynynge  a  moste  pleasaunt  Dialoge 
towchynge  the  entertaynment  and  vsage  of  gaystes  in  comen  Innes 
etc.]     [?W.  Griffith:  London  c.  1566.] 

"No  copy  of  this  work  is  known  to  me;  but  the  book  was  licensed 
to  W.  Griffith  in  1566.    Cf  Arber's  Stationers'  Register  i.  334. "    e.g.d. 

Funus,  lately  traducte...at  the  request  of  a  certayne  gentylman. 
16°.  John  Skot:  London  1534. 

One  dialogue  or  colloquy  (intituled  "  Diversoria  ")  translated... by- 
E.  H.     40.  W.  Griffyth:  London  1566. 

Two  dyalogues...one  called  Polyphemus... the  other  dysposyng  of 
thynges  and  names,  trans,  by  E.  Becke.  8°.  J.  Mychell :  Canterbury 
[c.  1550]. 

Mychell  printed  1 549-56. 

CONCIO  DE  PUERO  JESU. 

A  sermon  of  the  chyld  Jesus.     8°.  Rob.  Redman:  London  [c.  1531]. 
Redman  printed  1523-40. 

DE  CI  VI LIT  ATE  MORUM  PUERILIUM  LIBELLUS. 

A  lytell  Booke  of  good  Maners  for  chyldren...with  Interpretacion... 
into  the  vulgare  Englysshe  Tonge  by  Robert  Whytynton,  Laureate 
Poete.     16°.  W.  de  Worde :  London   1532. 


XVI.   Cent,  versions  of  Erasmus        237 

DE  CONTEMPTU  MUNDI. 

De    contemptu    mundi    epistola,   translated    in    to    englysshe    [by 
T.  Paynell].     i6°.  Tho.  Berthelet:  London  1533. 
DE  IMMENSA  DEI  MISERICORDIA  CONCIO. 

De  immensa  dei  misericordia  (trans,  at  the  request  of  the  lady 
Margaret  Countese  of  Salisburye  by  Gentian  Hervet).  8°.  Tho. 
Berthelet:  London  1533. 

De  immensa  Dei  misericordia.     Trans,  from  the  Latin  of  Erasmus 
by  Gentian  Hervet.     4°.  T.  Berthelet:  London  [c.  1543]. 
Berthelet  printed  1530-1555. 
DE  MORTE  DECLAMATIO. 

A  treatise  perswadyng  a  man  paciently  to  suffer  the  death  of  his 
freend  [preceded  by  the  Tables  of  Cebes,  the  philosopher,  trans.' by 
Sir  F.  Poyngz ;  and  How  one  may  take  profit  of  his  enemies,  trans, 
out  of  Plutarch].     16°.  Tho.  Berthelet:  London  [c.  1550]. 
DE  PRAEPARATIONE  AD  MORTEM. 

Preparation  to  deathe,   a  boke  as  devout  as  eloquent.     8°.  Tho. 
Berthelet:  London  1543. 
ENCHIRIDION  MILITIS  CHRISTIANI. 

A  booke  called  in  Latyn  Enchiridion  militis  Christiani  and  in 
englysshe  the  manuel  of  the  christen  knyght,  plenysshed  with  most 
holsome  preceptes....To  the  which  is  added  a  newe  and  mervaylous 
profytable  preface  [trans,  attributed  to  W.  Tyndale].  8°.  Wynkin  de 
Worde,  for  Johan  Byddell,  othervvyse  Salisbury:  London,  Nov.  15, 

1533- 
An  edition  is  given  in  Bibliotheca  Erasmiana.    8°.  Basel  (?  London, 

W.  de  Worde)  15 18. 

"There  is  no  authority  for  the  edition  of  1518."     E.  G.  D. 
ENCOMIUM  MA  TR I  MO  Nil. 

A  ryght  frutefull  epystle...in  laude  and  prayse  of  matrymony,  trans. 
by  R.  Tavernour.     8".  Robert  Redman:  London  [c.  1530]. 
Redman  printed  1523-40. 
EPISTOLA  AD  BALTHASAREM  EPISC. 

An  epistle  of... Erasmus... concernynge  the  veryte  of  the  sacrament 
of  Christus  body  and  bloude...dedycated...unto...Balthasar  bysshop 
of  Hyldesheimensem.  8°.  R.  Wyer:  [London  1535]. 
EPISTOLA  APOLOGETICA  AD  CHRISTOPHORUM EP.  BASIL. 
An  epystell...unto...Christofer  bysshop  of  Basyl,  cocemyng  the 
forbedynge  of  eatynge  of  flesshe,  and  lyke  constitutyons  of  men. 
8°.  Thorn.  Godfray:  London  [c.  1532]. 

Godfray  printed  in  1532. 


238        XVI.   Cent,  versions  of  Erasmus 

EXOMOLOGESIS  SIVE  MODUS  CONFITENDI. 

A  lytle  treatise  of  the  maner  and  forme  of  confession.    8°.  J.  Byddell : 
London  [c.  1538]. 
EXPLANATIO  SYMBOLI  APOSTOLORUM. 

A  playne  and  godly  expossytion  or  declaration  of  the  commune 
crede...and  of  the  ten  commaundements  of  Goddes  law;  at  the  request 
of  Thomas,  erle  of  Wyltshyre.      12°.  R.  Redman:  [London]  1533. 

INSTITUTUM  HOMINIS  CHRISTIANI. 

The  godly  and  pious  institution  of  a  christen  man.  8°.  Thom. 
Berthelet :  London  1537. 

An   English   translation    of  Erasmus'   metrical  version   of  Colet's 
Cathecyzon. 

LIBELLUS  DE  PUERIS  LIBERALITER  INSTITUENDIS. 

That  chyldren  oughte  to  be  taught  and  broughte  up  getly  in  vertue 
and  learnynge  [preceded  by- A  treatise  of  schemes  and  tropes,  gathered 
out    of   the    best    grammarians   and    oratours   by    Rychard    Sherry, 
Londoner].     8°.  John  Day:  London  [c.  1555]. 
John  Day  printed  1546-84. 

MORIAE  ENCOMIUM. 

The  praise  of  folic... englished  by  Sir  Thom.  Chaloner.  4°.  Th. 
Berthelet:  London  1549. 

(In  the  colophon  the  date  is  printed  MDLXix.) 
PARACLESIS. 

An  exhortation  to  the  diligent  studye  of  scripture... translated  in  to 

englissh  (by  W.  Roy?).     8°.  Hans  Luft:  Malborow  1529. 

"Very  probably  printed  at  Cologne."     E.  G.  D. 

An    exhortacyon    to    the    dylygent    study   of   scripture,    made   by 

Erasmus  of  Roterdam,   and  lately  translated  into  Englyshe,   which 

he   fixed   before   the   new   testament.     12°.    Robert   Wyer:    London 

[c.  16.^5]- 

Erasmus  on  the  sacrament,  and  an  exhortation  to  the  study  and 
readynge  of  the  gospell. ...Done  at  Basle  1522.  12°.  Robert  Wyer: 
London  [c.  1535]. 

Wyer  printed  1527-42. 

PRECATJO  DOMINICA. 

A  devout  treatise  upon  the  Pater  noster.  4°.  W.  de  Worde: 
London  1524. 

"This  edition  is  doubtful."     E.  G.  D. 
A   devout   treatise   upon    the    Pater  noster.     [With   a  preface   by 
R.  Hyrde  dated  Oct.   i,  1524.]     Th.  Berthelet:  London  [c.  1530]. 


XVI.   Cent,  versions  of  Erasmus        239 

QUERELA  PA  CIS. 

The  complaint  of  jjeace,  trans,  by  T.  Paynell      8°.  John  Cawoode : 
London  1559. 
RESPONSIO    AD    DISPUTATIONEM     CUJUSDAM    PHIMO- 
STOMI  DE  DIVORTIIS. 

The  censure  and  judgement  of  Erasmus:  Whyther  dyvorsemente 
betweene  man  and  wyfe  stondeth  with  the  law  of  God. ..trans,  by 
N.  Lesse.  8».  Printed  by  the  widowe  of  John  Herforde :  London 
[c.  1550]. 

The  widow  of  J.  Herforde  printed  1 549-50. 

SILENI  ALCIBIADIS  (Ex  Adagiis  chiliad.  Ill,  cent.  III). 

A  scornful  image  or  monstrous  shape  of  a  marvelous  strange  figure 
called  Sileni  Alcibiadis  presenting  ye  state  and  condicion  of  this 
present  world....     16°.  John  Goughe:   London  [c.  1535]- 

"Gough  apparently  never  printed,  but  was  in  business  as  a  book- 
seller,   1526-X543."     E.  G.  D. 
VIRGINIS  ET  MARTYRIS  COMPARATIO. 

A  comparation  of  a  vyrgin  and  a  marter,  trans,  by  Thomas  Paynel. 
8°.  T.  Berthelet:  London  1537. 


INDEX. 


Adagia,   ii,   17 

Adrian  VI,  Pope,  26 

Aeschylus,  37 

Aesop,  106,  in,  212 

Agricola,  Rudolphus,  3 

Aldus,  E.  the  guest  of,  16,  17  ;  his 
printing  house,  17,  45,  138 

Alexander  de  Villa  Dei,  104  n. 

Allegory,  use  of,  49 

Ambrose,  St,  28,   113,   140 

Antiquity,  E.  and,  30  seqq. ;  in  re- 
lation to  Christianity,  39  seqq. 

Apophthegmata,  of  Plutarch,  in; 
E.'s  collection,  159 

Ariosto,  68 

Aristophanes,  112,   113 

Aristotle,  the  Ethics  of,  i,  114;  the 
Physica  of,  147 ;  the  Politics  of, 
I3'»  i35>  140 '  01^  women's  edu- 
cation, 152 

Arithmetic,   145,  212 

Astrology,  138,   142,   145-6 

Athenaeus,  139 

Augustine,  St,  28,  140 ;  works  of, 
edited  by  E.,  28 ;  in  relation  to 
classical  culture,  49,  113,  140 

Aurispa,  138 

Authors,  choice  of,  in  seqq.  ; 
method  of  reading,  X15  seqq., 
158.  223 

Barzizza,  Gasparino,   127 

Basel,  E.  at,  22,  25 ;  his  friends  at, 

25,  29  ;  dies  at,  29 
Basil,  St,  49,  140 
Beccadelli,  Antonio,  33 


Bembo,  Pietro,  Cardinal,  54,  56-7  ; 

and  the  use  of  vernacular,  66,  70, 

123 
Bernard  of  Clairvaux,   140 
Biondo,  Flavio,  129 
Boccaccio,   140 

Bois-le-Duc,  E.  at  school  at,  4 
Bombasius,  45 
Borgia,  Cesare,  42 
Borgia,  Rod.,    Alexander   VI,    26, 

Bruni,  Lionardo,  d' Arezzo,  5 1 , 1 1 5  n ., 

131.  132 
Budaeus,  23,  138 

Caesar,  C.  Julius,   112 
Cambrai,  Bp  of,  7 
Cambridge,   14,  20,   21 
Castiglione,  B.,  60 
Cato  pro  pueris,  20 
Cellini,  Benvenuto,  42 
Chalcondylas,  the  Greek  Grammar 

of,  no 
Charles  V,  Emperor,  23 
Chartres,  the  Schools  at,   103 
Christian    Latinists    in    education, 

Christiani    Matrimonii    Instttutio, 

89,  91.  154 
Christianity  and  Antiquity,  35,  48, 

49 
Chrysoloras,  30  ;  the  Erotemata  of, 

used  by  E.,  no  n. 
Chrysostom,  St,  and  antiquity,  49, 

137 
Cicero,  54,  112,  122,  136;  as  mora- 


Index 


241 


list,  46 ;   the   Ttisculans  of,  48 ; 

the  De  Officiis,  131 
Ciceronianism,  E.  and,  27,  51  seqq. 
Ciceronianus,  Dialogus,  27,  48,  52, 

Coins,  a  knowledge  of,  139 ;  in- 
scriptions upon,   97 

Colet,  John,  Dean  of  St  Paul's,  7, 
10,  II,  13,  19,  20,  114;  his  in- 
fluence on  E.,  45 

Collationary  Brothers,  4 

Colloquia  {Colloquies,  Colloquiorum 
formulae),  23,  24,  96,  99,  106, 
109,  126,  142,  147,  149,  226 

Comenius,  J.,  \}a&Janua  of,  109 

Composition,   123  seqq.,  169 

Concio  de  Puero  Jesu,  20 

Convivium  Religiosum,  142,  220 

Cordier,  Mathurin,  the  Dialogues  of, 
109 

Cortegiano,  II,  74,  142 

Cortesius,  52 

Courtier,  the,  as  ideal  of  an  edu- 
cated man,   76,  77 

Cromwell,  Thomas,  40 

Cyprian,  St,   114 

De  Civilitate  Morum  Pueriliiim,  73, 
156 

De  Conscribendts  Epistolis,  126,  223 

De  Constrtictione,  21,  107 

De  Copia,  12,  20,  117,  121,  126, 
128,   146 

De  Libero  A r bit r to,   26 

De  Pueris  Inslituendis,  27,  48,  155, 
180  seqq. 

De  Ratione  Studii,  20,  iii  seqq., 
142,  159,    162 

De  Recta  Pronuntiatione,  2  7, 1 24, 147 

Declamation,  as  form  of  composi- 
tion, 127 

Definitions,  mediaeval,   102 

Demosthenes,  112,    122 

Deventer,  E.  at  school  at,  2,  3,  4 

Dialectic  and  Grammar,  102 

Discipline,  91,  98,  100,  205 

Dolet,  6tienne,  27,  52,  53  n. 

Dominici,  Giovanni,  39 

Donatus,   loi,   102 

Drawing,  98 


Ebrardus,  *  Graecista,'  3,  103  n. 

Education,  aim  of,  72  seqq. ;  antique 
ideal  of,  35,  64  ;  E.'s  concern  for, 
20,  21,  182  seqq.,  215  ;  power  of, 
81,  187;  social  end  of,  65,  73, 
160;  of  women,  87,  148  seqq. 

Elegantiae  Linguae  Latinae,  6, 
104,   127,  165 

Eloquence,  content  of  the  term,  124; 
its  importance  in  Italy,  120  seqq. 

Elyot,  Sir  Thomas,  23,  76,  105, 
114,    132,   145  n-.   153 

Enchiridion,    1 3 

Epistolae  Obscurorum  Virorum,  22 

Epistolary  Style,   124,  125 

Erasmus,  biography  of,  i  seqq, ; 
characteristics,  30 ;  chronology  of 
writings  of,  x  seqq. ;  works  of,  in 
English,  235  ;  and  vernacular 
languages,  62  seqq. 

Erasmus,  St,  Bishop  and  Martyr,  i 

Eratosthenes,  139 

Eruditio,  in  education,  78, 139  seqq., 
167 

Estienne,  Robert,  75  n.,  137  n. 

Eton  Latin  Grammar,   108 

Etymologies,  mediaeval,  44  n. 

Euripides,  E.'s  versions  from,  13, 
14,   16 

Fame,  as  motive,  42 

Ferrara,  E.  at,  17 

Ficino,   15,  37,  39 

Filelfo,  39,  43,   115  n. 

Florence,  E.  at,   15 

Floridus,  Franciscus,  66  seqq. 

Florista,    103,  221 

Folk-lore  in  education,   106,   214 

Fox,  Bishop,    14 

Froben,  22,  28 

Gaguin,  R.,  7 

Galen,   137 

Garlandia,  J.  de,  3,  103  n.,  221 

Gaza,  Theodore,  the  Greek  Grairi- 

mar  of,   21,  no 
Gellius,  Aulus,  139 
Geography,   139,  143-4.  I45.  212 
Geometry,  146 
Gerard,  father  of  E.,   i 


242 


Index 


Girls,  education  of,  148  seqq. 

Gouda,  E.  at  school  at,  i 

Grammar,  the  teaching  of,  loiseqq., 
216 

Grammarians, mediaeval,  103,  I04n., 
109 

Greek,  in  the  Augustan  Age,  1 36 ; 
Christianity  and,  35,  136 ;  E.'s 
enthusiasm  for,  12,  13,  34;  the 
study  of,  II,  45,  135;  texts, 
scarcity  of,  13,  137;  teaching  of, 
98,  no,  135  seqq.;  translations 
from,  by  E.,  13 

Greek  Testament,  E.'s  edition  of,  ^^ 

Grocyn,  14 

Guarino  da  Verona,  104  n. ;  and 
Terence,   113 

Guicciardini,   132 

Hegius,  2,  3 

Helias,  Petrus,   102-3 

Henry  VIII  of  England,  18 

Herodotus,   112,   129 

Hesiod,   134,   140,  198 

Hippocrates,  137 

Historians,  useful  in  education,  128 

History,  study  and  value  of,  128 
seqq. 

Home  education,  90  seqq.,   155 

Homer,  112,  140;  allegorical  in- 
terpretation of,  49 

Horace,    112,   114,   134 

Humanism  and  Christianity,  31,  47 
seqq. 

Humanists,  at  Rome,  17,  45,  59 ; 
critics  of  ecclesiastical  claims,  44 ; 
upon  antique  knowledge,  33 

Imitation,  52,  54  seqq. 
Individual,  the,  in  the  Renaissance, 

40,  120 
Individuality  in  education,  81,  131, 

159'  '60 
Inscriptions,    139 

Institutio  Principis  Christiatn,  23 
Institututn  Christiani  Hominis,  2 1 
Interest,  E.'s  doctrine  of,  99,  119 
Isidore  of  Seville,  loi 
Italian  as  literary  language,  69,  70 
Italy,  E.  visits,  15  seqq. 


Jerome,  St,  E.'s  interest  in,  21,  22; 
his  relation  to  classical  culture,  49, 

"3.   '36.   150 
Jesuits,  the  Jamia  of  the,    109 
Julius  II,  Pope,   16,  59 
Juvencus,   114 

Lactantius,  114 

Language  method,  E.'s  doctrine  of, 

105-6,   no 
Lascaris,  J.,   the  Greek  Grammar 

of,   no 
Latinity,  E.  and,  6,  51  seqq. 
Leo  X,  Pope,  22,  26 
Lily,   \V.,  21,  107 
Linacre,   14,   138 
Livy,  113,    116,   126;  the  speeches 

in,   122 
Logic,  in  education,  133  seqq.,  165 
London,  E.  in,   14 
Louvain,  E.    at,    12,    14,    23,    25; 

Collegium  Trilingue  at,  24 
Lucan,   122,  124 
Lucian,  E.'s  versions  from,  13,  I4, 

1 12 
Ludolphus  (Florista),  103  n. 
Luther,  66,   123 

Machiavelli,   31,    42,    60,   82,    123, 

132 
Macrobius,   139 

Manners,  teaching  of,   156  seqq. 
Mantuanus,  Baptista,  115  n. 
Manual  arts,   148 
Margaret,  mother  of  E. ,  i,   2,  4 
Martial,  E.'s  objection  to,  47 
Mathematics  in  education,  138  seqq. 
Mediaevalists,    37,    38,     109,    in, 

'34.  135 

Mela,   Pomponius,   140,   145 
Melanchthon,  51,84,  119,  123,  133, 

136 
Michael    de    Marbais,    '  Modista,' 

103  n. 
Michelangelo,  31 
Modi  significandi,   102 
Monastic  life,  E.'s  recollections  of, 

5,  6,  7  ;  schools,  92 
Montaigne,  96,   105 
Montaigu,  College  de,   7 


Index 


243 


Moral  training,  37,  154  seqq. 
Moralia  of  Plutarch,  iii,  159 
More,    Sir  Thomas,    14,    150;   his 

influence  on  E.,  45,  62,  74,  149, 

201 
Moriae  Encomium.,  19,  62 
Motives  in  education,  99 
Mountjoy,   Lord,    a  patron   of  E., 

8,  lo 
Music,  145  seqq.,  212 
Musurus,  17,  45 

Nationality,  E.  and,  33,  84 
Natura,  79,  80,  81,  155,  183,  187, 

191 
Natural  science,  84,  85,   138  seqq., 

189,  190,   226 
Nausea,   1 14 

Note-taking,  E.'s  advice  upon,  119 
Nuremberg,  school  at,   137 

Orator,   the,   concept    of,    122 ;    as 
ideal   of  educated   man,    76,  77, 

Orators  in  education,   121 
Oratory,  study  of,  1 20  ;  function  of, 

in  the  Renaissance,   120,  121 
Origeh,  49,  137 
Ovid,   140 
Oxford,  E.  at,   10,   11 

Padua,    E.   at,   17;  the  Ciceronian 

tradition  at,   27 
Pannonius,  Janus,  43 
Papias,    102,    103  n. 
Paraphrases,    The,  28 
Paris,  E.  at,   7,  8 
Pater,  Walter,  60 
Patronage,  E.   and,  8,   9 
Paumgarten,   1 50 
Perotti,  Nicola,   104,  109,  127 
Petrarch,  99,   131    n.,   115  n.,   120 
Philosophy,  E.'s  attitude  towards, 

37.    133.   191 
Physical    training,    77,    87    seqq., 

201 
Physics,   147 
Pico,    Giovanni,    della    Mirandula, 

27.  37.  52.  56 


Pictures  in  education,  96,  106,  139, 

142,  213,  227 
Pirckheimer,  74,   150 
Plato,  37,  46,    114,   134,   140,   141 
Platonic  Academy,  39  n. 
Platonic  philosophy,  49,  134,  135  n. 
Plautus,  112,   113 
Pliny,     Letters    of,    127;  Natural 

History  of,   139,   I45 
Plotinus,  1 40 
Plutarch,  37,  iii,   129.  134,  186  ; 

E.'s  versions  from,  21 
Poets,  for  school  use,  112,  113,  114 
Poggio,    IS,  51,   131 
Political  theory,  38,  134 
Poliziano,  Angelo,   15,  27,  52,  55, 

115,   123,  220 
Printers  of  school  texts,   137  n. 
Priscian,   loi,  102,   103  n. 
Prudentius,   114 

Psychology  of  E.,  46,  78  seqq. 
Ptolemy,    140,  145 
Punishments,  99,  205  seqq.,  209 

Quintilian,  20,  54,  loi,  in,  121, 
122,  127,   128,   136,   138,  143 

Quintilian,  the  Epitome  of,  by 
Patrizi,   121  n. 

Ratio,  or  Reason,  in  human  nature, 

78  seqq.,    183,    192 
Reading,  97,  215 
'  Real '  Studies,   138  seqq. 
Reformation,    beginnings    of,    24 ; 

E.  in  relation  to,  25,  26 ;  effects 

of,  upon  humanism,  40 
Religion,    rudiments    of,    90^     154 

seqq. 
Renaissance  in  Italy  and  Northern 

Europe,  30,  31,  40,  41,   155 
Respublica  Litteraria,  65 
Reuchlin,   19,   137 
Rhetoric,   122,   127 
Romances,  114 
Rome,  E.  at,  17,   18;   Ciceronians 

there,  45,  59 

Sadoleto,  37,  78,  83,  87,  89,  105, 

130.   134 
Sallust,  112,  122,  139 


244 


Index 


Scaliger,  Julius  Caesar,  27,  52,  54 

Scholasticism,  E.  in  relation  to,  7, 
103,   104,   III,    134 

School  age,  80,  81,  91  n. 

Schoolmasters,  status  and  qualifi- 
cations of,  93  seqq.,  95,  99,  167, 
203,  210;  provision  of,  209 

Schools,  type  of,  approved  by  E., 
83,  92  n.,  204 

Scotus,   134 

Seneca,  iii,   134,   159 

Servius,  loi 

Siena,  E.  at,   17 

Sintheim,  3,  104  n. 

Socrates,   114,  134 

Stein,   Augustinian    House    at,   5, 

6,  31 
Strabo,   140 
Sturm,   Johann,  73,  90,   122,   123, 

137 
Sunitnulae  Logicae,   134 
Sylvius,  Aeneas,  Pius  II,  64,   121, 

127,  145 

Tacitus,  46,  113,   129,  159 
Terence,  Comedies  of,  edited  by  E., 

28,    113;     humanist    admiration 

for,  28,  112,   113,  134,  159,  164; 

objections  to,  39  n. 
Testamentum    Novum,    Greek   text 

of,  edited  by  E.,  22 
Theophrastus,   140 
Thomas  Aquinas,  154 
Thucydides,    128 
Titus,  Epistle  to,  137 
Tours,   103 

Training,  80,  183,  191,  192 
Trapezuntius,   127 


Travel  in  education,   160 
Turin,  E.  at,  15 

Urbanus,  the  Greek  Grammar   of, 

no 
Usus,   79,  80 
Utrecht,  E.  at  school  at,  2 

Valerius  Maximus,    134 

Valla,  Lorenzo,  6,  33,  104,  109, 
127;  on  Donation  0/  Const antine, 
44  ;  on  the  New  Testament,   13 

Venice,  E.  at,  16 

Vergerio,   P.  P.,  39,  42  n.,  83 

Vergil,  reverence  for,  46 ;  to  be 
understood  by  way  of  Allegory, 
49  ;  didactic  uses  of,   174 

Vernacular  tongues,  E.'s  position 
towards,  36,  60 

Virtu,  42,   120 

Vitruvius,  60 

Vittorino  da  Feltre,  33,  51,  57,  95 

Vives,  64,  114,  133,  153  n. 

Vocabularius  Breviloquus,    104  n. 

Vulgate  for  school  use,   1 1 1 

War,  E.'s  dislike  of,  35,  189 
Warham,  Archbishop,  14,  22,  62 
Wimpheling,  114,  115 
Winckel,  P.,  guardian  of  E.,  2 
Women,   as  teachers   of  boys,   94, 

95  ;    education    of,     148    seqq. ; 

place    of,    in    Italian  Society    of 

Renaissance,  149 
Writing,  the  teaching  of,  97 

Xenophon,  128 


camhridgb:    printed  by  j.  and  c.  f.  clay,  at  the  university  press. 


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